Best Buy’s AI rollout blends human expertise with autonomous systems—aimed at cutting costs and boosting CX at scale.
The electronics giant is going all-in on autonomous AI to cut costs, boost CX, and win back growth
Best Buy is going all in on agentic AI
Best Buy just told Wall Street it’s betting big on agentic AI—not as a gimmick, but as an operational sledgehammer. CEO Corie Barry isn’t mincing words: “It’s about solving real customer problems — quickly, meaningfully, and at scale.”
Let’s decode what that actually means for operators.
This isn’t Best Buy slapping AI lipstick on a broken process. This is them gut-renovating the core.
What is agentic AI (and why is it different)?
Agentic AI is a step beyond chatbots or “smart” filters. These systems act, not just react.
Think:
- Tools that learn from every interaction
- Systems that autonomously complete complex tasks
- Interfaces that guide customers without handholding
Barry says it best: “We want every interaction to feel effortless.”
Translation: Cut the fluff. Fewer keystrokes. Less “let me transfer you.” More, “Here’s your solution.”
And it’s not just theoretical. These tools are already live in Best Buy’s IVR systems, digital search, and service reps’ hands.
Where Best Buy is deploying AI — and what it changes
🔍 Smarter product discovery
Forget typing “laptop” and getting 1,200 results. Best Buy is overhauling its search experience with conversational AI prompts that narrow results, not bloat them. Fewer, more relevant hits = more conversions.
🧑💻 Contact center triage
Updated IVR and chat systems now reroute fewer calls and solve more tickets up front. That’s fewer agent escalations and lower cost-per-contact—a real win for margins.
🔧 Geek Squad + salesfloor support
In-store staff now use AI for product recs, diagnostics, and predictive fixes. It’s the Lowe’s Mylow Companion playbook in a Best Buy shell: AI as your associate’s sidekick, not replacement.
🚚 Shipping optimization
New tools analyze cost + location + stock to pick the smartest delivery method. Bonus: Lower fulfillment costs and happier customers.
The catch: Revenue is soft, and AI alone won’t fix that
Despite the AI glow-up, Best Buy just cut full-year guidance due to tariff pressures and shaky demand. Same-store sales fell 0.7%, and revenue missed estimates.
So yes, AI is a big bet—but it’s also a necessary hedge.
📊 Domestic online now accounts for 31.7% of revenue
💡 3 in 5 customers touch digital before they buy
🛍️ New third-party marketplace drops this summer
AI is about making those digital journeys stickier and more profitable—not just shinier.
Operator POV: AI as a margin weapon, not just a CX toy
This is what separates Best Buy from the AI tourists.
✅ Embedding agentic AI where complexity kills scale
✅ Supporting frontline employees—not sidelining them
✅ Driving operational lift, not vanity metrics
Compare that to the never-ending “pilot programs” elsewhere. Best Buy is past the proof-of-concept phase. It’s rolling changes out before Q4 2025.
And they’re not alone. Lowe’s just dropped a similar bomb with Mylow Companion—scaling AI to 1,700 stores and 300,000 associates. That’s not an experiment. That’s a full-stack transformation.
So what?
Best Buy’s AI playbook is a case study in pragmatic retail transformation.
Not just CX fluff. Just real tools solving real problems at real scale.
For operators: Take notes. If you’re still treating AI like a chatbot with dreams, you’re already behind.
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