E-commerce, an industry set to reach $8T by 2026, is undergoing a seismic shift in the way brands and consumers interact. Until now, the interaction between consumers and brands has been primitive at best, where “innovation” over the last 10 years has taken window shopping from the high street to the screen.
2024 is seeing a new leaf being turned, as emerging technologies sink their teeth into mainstream and retail industries, giving rise to the next wave of consumer-brand interactions and digital shopping experiences.
With many building the shovels to mine the digital gold that is the retail consumer, here are 4 of the most promising tech connoisseurs who are reshaping the commerce landscape.
YOUR AI Protocol
Leading the charge is YOUR AI Protocol. With their eyes set on being the “AI-driven Content Layer” for the global E-commerce industry, they are battling for content management and distribution domination with some of the world’s biggest players – their recent IDO saw them break DAO Makers record for most subscribed IDO – with over $82,000,000 worth of $DAO being staked. The launch saw a 26x return on the day.
Partnering with $52B e-commerce giant Shopify, gives YOUR AI the opportunity to impact the experience of 700M consumers worldwide across nearly 5M stores. Shopify is the leading end-to-end e-commerce platform, allowing anyone to create, manage and grow their online business. Through this partnership, YOUR AI’s content streaming infrastructure can support brand owners in showing the most relevant and best-performing content on their stores, enriching the overall e-commerce experience.
YOUR AI is creatively solving problems for consumers and brands alike. The current state of commerce is leaning more and more towards user-generated content, with many creators being taken advantage of by e-commerce stores through inequitable reward schemas.
YOUR AI leverages 2 proprietary models to support brands, creators and stores.
- AI Monet: Using vectorization, AI Monet aids in content creation, by turning images and texts into vectors, AI Monet can digest large sets of content and then streamline further creation.
- AI Picasso: The Intelligence Layer of YOUR AI. AI Picasso analyzes user preferences and helps curate content feeds that adhere to them, creating a more personalized shopping experience.
Through their use of BRC-20 inscriptions, creators are provided real ownership and recognition for their work, as well as a value-based reward schema, aligning incentives. E-commerce stores will then have access to creator content, being able to use best-fit content to engage users and drive sales.
A win-win for all parties. Better content, higher value created, better rewards.
With an intuitive combination of AI and blockchain, their solution also provides e-commerce brands with simple content management and distribution capabilities, providing a protocol to manage content across multiple platforms without hassle.
Backed by some heavy hitters, such as SkyVision Capital and Insquare Ventures, alongside their recent acceptance in the Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub and the NVDIA Developers Partner Program, YOUR AI is positioned to disrupt the way brands, creators and consumers interact in a way we have not seen before.
WOM Protocol
WOM protocol (short for Word of Mouth) is taking the honest, universally trusted referral to the next level. Fusing the world of UGC content with smart contracts and blockchain, WOM is creating a platform for brands, creators and the avid scroller alike to earn, engage and drive revenue sustainably and familiarly.
For creators, $WOM is earned by creating content on their partner platforms, your everyday user can then authenticate and review content to earn further rewards, creating a feedback loop where honest reviews are incentivized – ensuring the real quality of content is kept high.
Brands can then use $WOM to boost content on partner apps, as an organic version of an ad that has already shown itself to be effective, and give consumers a more engaging way to interact with brands.
Now part of the Cointelegraph incubation program, WOM is on track to change the way brands advertise for good.
Simplecast (Prev. Audios.co)
Simplecast sits as the market leader in podcast management and distribution solutions. With one click publishing to the world’s leading podcast discovery platforms, Simplecast is powering the world’s leading productions.
Distribution is only half the equation, Simplecast has helped podcasts monetize their shows with their. Their dynamic ad insertions, a wide variety of targeting options and an automated monetization system give podcasters untold flexibility, with a more than favourable cut of ad revenue.
For podcasts looking to take their show to the world stage, Simplecast is setting the standard for an affordable, flexible solution that powers the podcast economy.
Boson Protocol
Boson Protocol is utilising blockchain technology to shift the way e-commerce transactions occur for the better. Sticking to the basics, Boson is using smart contracts and blockchain technology, to create a trustless, automated, open commerce layer where physical products can be bought and sold freely – without third-party intermediaries sticking their feet in the way.
By tokenizing trade commitments over physical assets, Boson has overcome the physical asset oracle issue that most tokenized real-world asset protocols face. Boson essentially turns trade commitments into redeemable NFTs, which can be bought and sold on the open market. When a user wants to receive the physical product, all they have to do is redeem it!
This architecture coupled with smart contracts governing the system, means there is little to no need for any human interference – an autonomous, open commerce market with the consumer’s best interest at heart
This year, Boson Protocol has already partnered with Artist Francesco Scura (better known as DARK) to deliver redeemable sculptures that are available on the Boson Protocol.
“The fusion of my phygital art world with their innovative platform represents a bold and compelling step into the future of art and technology”, said DARK, “The decentralization and use of blockchain technology perfectly render and reflect my vision of a future where art and technology coexist harmoniously.”
Boson is taking steps to become the world’s trusted layer of commerce, and its technology is providing the stepping stones for efficient trade on a global scale.
Wrapping up
The world of commerce is experiencing its second coming, with all the projects on this list playing their part in the shift towards a more equitable and free commerce experience. From YOUR AI and their ability to reward creators and create personalised user shopping experiences, to Boson and their open and efficient commerce engine, the future of the industry is in safe hands.
