Ghosts, Ghouls and Algorithms Are Shaping the Future of Retail

Halloween – a time when children and adults alike are scared by ghosts and ghouls as they go from door to door being tricked or treated.

But this year, Halloween faces a real threat; namely that the ghosts and ghouls might be too busy buying from beyond the grave to bother with trick-or-treating. And agentic AI is to blame. It’s a force so powerful, that it will change not just who, but what, buys the products that brands and retailers sell.

For years, the marketing world has buzzed about personalisation and customer-centricity. But what happens when the 'customer' isn't even a living, breathing human? This isn't a sci-fi fantasy; it's the future of commerce, driven by Agentic AI.

These intelligent agents, acting on behalf of consumers, are poised to take over the entire shopping journey – from anticipating needs to negotiating prices and executing purchases. Our data shows a clear consumer appetite for AI to play a more instrumental role in shopping, with a growing sense of the benefits it could deliver - with nearly half of global shoppers (48%) saying they are excited for a world where an AI, acting on behalf of a consumer, can talk to a brand or a retailer’s AI, and get them the products they want at a price they want. A further 52% are also excited for their own AI which can act on their behalf when shopping.

This will force a radical change in marketing and sales strategy. For years, brands and retailers have focused on understanding and influencing the human shopper, but with the rise of agentic AI, the real customer is rapidly becoming the algorithm acting on behalf of the shopper.

Imagine your brand's carefully crafted ad campaign or mobile app being evaluated not by a human eye, but by an AI programmed for logic, value, and efficiency. If your product doesn't make the AI's shortlist, it's essentially invisible to the end consumer. This is a stark warning for businesses still clinging to outdated marketing strategies.

But the most captivating, and perhaps unsettling, aspect of this evolution is what we at VML call 'p'ost-death consumerism', something that will force us to ask ourselves 'do you even need to be alive to buy?'

Far from being an outlandish notion, this is something that is technically already feasible, and perhaps more surprisingly, something that seems desirable – our data reveals that a significant 42% of global consumers would be interested in buying from beyond the grave. This isn't about spooky séances; it's about training an AI to learn a person's financial and shopping habits during their lifetime, allowing it to continue managing a digital estate and making purchases after they've passed.

Of course the question is why? It could be to continue to buy presents for loved ones when you’re long gone, or to mark special occasions when you can’t be there any longer.

Which means that this Halloween, while children are dressed as their favourite superheroes, the ghosts of consumers past, might not be haunting old mansions, but actively engaging in commerce. They're not looking for candy; they're seeking out the best deals on their preferred products, all orchestrated by their loyal Agentic AI. This 'grief tech' or 'digital afterlife technology' is no longer a fringe concept; it's a tangible, albeit unconventional, market opportunity.

The question is no longer if Agentic AI will reshape commerce, but how quickly and how profoundly.

So, this Halloween, as you ponder the supernatural, also consider the very real, and perhaps even more startling, future of shopping. The consumer landscape is evolving at a breath taking pace, and the rise of Agentic AI, coupled with the intriguing prospect of post-death consumerism, demands a radical rethinking of business strategy. The brands that embrace this new reality, understanding that their future customers might just be algorithms, will be the ones to thrive in this increasingly automated, and perhaps even haunted, marketplace.