According to Fortune, Target’s chief information and product officer Prat Vemana just bought sleepwear through OpenAI’s ChatGPT as the retailer angles to reach the chatbot’s 800 million weekly users. Target debuted an AI-powered gift finder this month and has rolled out ChatGPT Enterprise to 18,000 employees, with 92% satisfaction. The company plans to increase capital expenditures by $1 billion to about $5 billion for technology advancements. Meanwhile, Salesforce’s survey of 200 global CIOs shows AI implementation jumped from 11% to 42% in 2024, with 75% of CIOs feeling more confident and 96% either using or planning to use agentic AI within two years. Target’s digital comparable sales have increased for seven consecutive quarters, including a 2.4% gain in the fiscal third quarter.
Target’s All-In AI Bet
Here’s the thing about Target’s AI push – it’s happening on multiple fronts simultaneously. They’re experimenting with consumer-facing AI shopping through ChatGPT integration while also rolling out internal tools like Store Companion for associates and agentic AI for customer service. The timing is interesting given that holiday sales are projected to surpass $1 trillion for the first time in 2025. But is this scattergun approach the right move? Vemana admits Target expects “ongoing sales struggles” to continue through the holiday season, so the AI investments feel like a Hail Mary play. The inventory management system focusing on “frequency items” like cereal and underwear seems practical, but the ChatGPT shopping integration? That feels more like chasing buzz than solving real customer problems.
The Unexpected CIO Confidence Boom
Now this is fascinating – 75% of CIOs feel more confident than they did a year ago? That’s a massive shift in sentiment. Basically, after three years of ChatGPT-induced panic, tech leaders are finally finding their footing. The jump from 11% to 42% full AI implementation is staggering, and the 96% adoption rate for agentic AI within two years shows this isn’t just experimentation anymore. But here’s my question: is this confidence warranted or are we seeing another case of “nobody got fired for buying IBM” syndrome? Salesforce, which conducted the survey, happens to be pushing agentic AI technology themselves. And CIOs dedicating 30% of their budget to agentic AI seems… aggressive. Remember when everyone was all-in on blockchain and metaverse?
The AI Model Wars Intensify
While Target bets on ChatGPT, the model landscape is getting brutally competitive. Anthropic launched its third major model in two months, Google’s Gemini 3 is getting rave reviews from people like Marc Benioff, and even OpenAI’s CEO privately acknowledged Google’s update would create “temporary economic headwinds.” The speed of iteration is insane. But here’s what worries me: we’re seeing Chinese hackers suspected of using Anthropic’s AI coding tool to breach organizations, and Oracle’s stock has tanked 40% since signing that $300 billion OpenAI deal. The AI bubble chatter isn’t going away, and when even Jensen Huang and Sundar Pichai are acknowledging “irrationality” in the market, maybe we should pay attention.
Leadership Musical Chairs
The executive turnover in tech leadership continues with Airbnb’s CTO stepping down after six years and GM’s chief AI officer departing after less than nine months. That GM role was created specifically for Turovsky and now they’re not even replacing him? Instead, the AI team will report to manufacturing and engineering. That tells you something about how companies are rethinking their AI strategies – maybe moving from flashy standalone roles to practical integration. Meanwhile, Intel snagged Cindy Stoddard from Adobe as their new CIO. These moves suggest we’re entering a consolidation phase where experience with practical implementation matters more than AI hype.
