Street Fight Daily: AI Is Already Reshaping Retail, Facebook Releases Details on News Subscription Feature

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology…

Artificial Intelligence Is Already Reshaping Retail in Profound Ways (VentureBeat)
Some of the largest, most practical advancements in AI are happening in the industrial sector, and it might come to the surprise of more than a few that the retail industry — traditionally risk-averse and more fast follower than early adopter — is leading the way.

Facebook Releases Details on Upcoming Subscription-Based News Product (AdWeek)
Publishers will have full control over the conversion and payment process, and payments will be processed directly via publishers’ websites. Facebook will not take a cut of those payments. MediaPost: Sephora chatbot on Facebook Messenger to aid in search, discovery.

Openings and New Hires at Daily Voice, Near, Local SEO Guide (Street Fight)
Every two weeks, Geoff Michener covers some of the latest openings and new hires in this dynamic industry.  This week’s edition includes moves and new openings at Yext, the MMA, and Acquisio.

What Retailers Think About the Store of the Future (Digiday)
At the Digiday Retail Summit, retailers discussed some of the biggest challenges they’re facing today, including remaining competitive as the industry explores new sales channels and embraces data and technology. The following are highlights…

Raise Report: New Funding for NewStore, Dynamic Yield, Convoy (Street Fight)
Every two weeks, we round up some of the biggest fundraises taking place in hyperlocal marketing, commerce, and tech. This week’s edition includes new funding for PebblePost, SnapTravel, Node, and SimilarWeb. 

The SEO Monopoly Hangover (Local SEO Guide)
Andrew Shotland: Ben Thompson’s post this week on Microsoft’s Monopoly Hangover touched a nerve. Thompson’s thesis is that companies that are monopolies tend to face considerable problems once the monopoly ends. This feels relevant because I think the SEO industry is in the early phases of a monopoly hangover.

The Athletic, a Local Sports Startup with No Advertising, Scoops Up $5.4 Million (Nieman Lab)
The Athletic, a startup focused on local, subscription-based quality sports journalism fresh out of Y Combinator’s summer 2016 class, has raised $5.4 million and scooped up the Sports Illustrated Group’s former editor-in-chief Paul Fichtenbaum to lead its nationwide expansion as chief content officer.

Amazon Profits Fall Short of Expectations, But Investors Shrug (NYT)
It was the kind of performance that investors have come to expect from Mr. Bezos and Amazon: a 25 percent increase in sales and example after example of how the company is pouring money into original video programming, warehouses and shaping the future with new technology and products like its Echo family of gadgets.

LBMA Podcast: Ant Financial, Proxama + Primesight, PlaceIQ (Street Fight)
This Week in Location Based Marketing is a weekly video podcast from the Location Based Marketing Association with Asif Khan and Aubriana Lopez. On the show:  Coke’s AI vending machine, Dex merges with YP, Commutestream.

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Joe Zappa is the Managing Editor of Street Fight. He has spearheaded the newsroom's editorial operations since 2018. Joe is an ad/martech veteran who has covered the space since 2015. You can contact him at [email protected]