It won’t come as a surprise that so many businesses are already implementing or accelerating their efforts to implement AI in some way. According to the latest data put out by the Retail Technology Show, which last took place in February 2025, AI is seen by 51 per cent of UK businesses as being the top innovation growth accelerator. Generative AI was next at 44 per cent, followed by personalisation tech getting a 25 per cent nod.
However, seeing what’s being deployed already along with the sentiment reported from different-sized businesses, the tech may already be widening the divide between large and small businesses.
Mixed reception across the board
Some onlookers of the business world talk to an almost romanticised view of artificial intelligence, with firms thinking that having AI will automatically lead to some grand breakthroughs. Others see a kind of AI fatigue already setting in. At a corporate level, Fortune has found that businesses are souring. In 2024, over 40 per cent of AI initiatives reported have been ousted. Perhaps it’s down to a romanticised push not delivering the swift results assumed.
There’s also the line of thought that AI is for big business and isn’t yet suitable or accessible for small businesses. Retail Systems reports that most independent retailers see the tech as being for big business. They aren’t aware of the more accessible AI-powered solutions that can enhance any size of business, and the perceived technical expertise needed is also working as a blocker.
Big businesses are certainly tapping up AI tech
One of the big benefits of AI that most businesses are looking to exploit is its enhanced customer personalisation capabilities. This could be huge, particularly for marketing outings and to refine customer experiences. This is particularly true of promotional events. Right now, platforms that feature promotions heavily as a marketing tool like to lean into having multiple options, such as with a page of many promo options. This is the case demonstrated by the two-part casino signup bonus online at Jackpot City.
Here, players get 100 free spins on one of the site’s most popular games as well as £100 in bonus funds. The funds can be used on any game, making the offer broad enough to appeal to most players. It sits in the promos section alongside the tournaments and other bonuses, like Random Cash Drops, to increase this broad appeal. In this way, players who are interested in Daily Tournaments, for example, will see the future appeal of claiming the welcome bonus and joining. It’s another way to broaden the appeal of a marketing campaign that revolves around bonuses.
With artificial intelligence empowering a marketing outing, and with enough data fed in, this broad approach can pivot to a refined and personalised one. Perhaps not in regard to a welcome bonus for new customers as the data would be lacking, but for future runs. The Debenhams Group, for examples, is now deploying AI to put out more timely promotions with individually tailored discounts rather than running catch-all campaigns.
Elsewhere, we can see the Chinese e-commerce colossus Alibaba making the most of AI. Here, the tech is being sunk into its virtual try-on video software to empower its fashion retailers and customers. Over in Lithuania, the supermarket chain IKI has joined forces with StrongPoint’s AI tech to enable them to ease the age estimation process in stores.
Despite its perception, AI can be deployed on small and large scales to enhance any business. Gradually, we’ll see small businesses come around to this to refine their operations, but for now, there’s a bit of hesitation.
