Grocery delivery and pickup service Instacart is actively embracing new technology. So it's no surprise that the company has embraced generative AI across its business. In this article, we'll take a look at how Instacart uses generative AI to better serve its customers and drive its business.
“Ask Instacart” feature
One of the first ways Instacart introduced generative AI was with its Ask Instacart feature, an AI search tool powered by OpenAI's ChatGPT. Ask Instacart is embedded directly in the search bar of the Instacart app and is designed to help customers answer questions and get personalized recommendations. It also provides information on product characteristics, dietary considerations, and food preparation. Therefore, customers can ask questions such as “What dishes can I serve with roast chicken?” or “What options are there for gluten-free snacks?” The app provides answers and recommendations. The answers are based on the customer's shopping history, but are also intended to encourage customers to try new products. It's also easy to use. Customers can simply type their questions directly into the search bar and receive personalized answers.
This is all designed to save customers time and make Instacart a one-stop service. Typically, a customer might visit her Google to find out about dietary restrictions or get snack recommendations, then visit Instacart to place an order. But now you can do it all within the Instacart app.
Ask Instacart solidified Instacart's reputation as an early adopter of generative AI. But how else is the company implementing generative AI?
Generate recipes using the Instacart plugin for ChatGPT
Instacart was also one of the first companies to create a plugin for ChatGPT designed to allow customers to access recipes and instantly purchase the items they need through Instacart. Let's say you want to make carrot cake. With the Instacart Chat GPT plugin, you can ask for a carrot cake recipe, create an instant shopping list based on your existing ingredients, and have the remaining ingredients delivered to your home via his Instacart.
Instacart also uses generative AI to create photos to accompany AI-generated recipes. (However, users have noted that the photos can sometimes look a little weird and jarring.)
Streamline internal processes with generative AI
Instacart uses generative AI internally in a variety of ways, including reducing manual work, increasing productivity, and improving operations. For example, the company used generative AI to develop an internal chatbot. This is a chatbot trained on internal and external data designed to help employees access information and answer frequently asked questions. In other words, generative AI will be used to leverage the vast amount of data Instacart has and help employees analyze that data and access insights. This helps democratize access to data within your company.
The company also uses generative AI to write computer code, enhance existing code, and convert code between programming languages. As an example, Instacart migrated its business intelligence tools and had to generate new custom Python code to support data visualization. Using generative AI cocoding tools, the team was able to quickly generate that code. This shows how generative AI can be a valuable productivity tool for internal teams, helping them work faster and smarter.
Additionally, generative AI is used to respond. When a retailer contacts us with a request, our generative AI converts their ticket request into a simple summary and label. For example, tickets can be categorized according to requests for new product features or bugs that need to be fixed. Thanks to Generative AI's ability to categorize and group tickets, teams can prioritize requests, avoid duplication of work, and identify patterns across different tickets. In other words, your team can save time and better serve your retail partners.
And this is all in addition to the use of generative AI to build new product experiences, such as the Ask Instacart feature.
In short, AI and generation AI is at the heart of everything Instacart does, from delivering new customer experiences to streamlining internal operations. That's something almost every company can learn from.
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