AI of the Future: Interview with Benjamin Dageroth

Can you give some examples of what you think AI-generated hyper-personalization will look like in the future?

“Soon, I think we will see that everyone will get emails in their preferred/native language because large language models are so good at translating on the fly. Having an international audience or trying to expand to a new market is a lot easier with LLMs. You can trust AI to translate reliably and to nail cultural details.

Beyond that, I believe product recommendations will see big improvements. Usually, they are based on past transactions, just “people who bought this also bought this. AI can read whole product catalogues, look at comments on products and take all this information into consideration.”

When do you expect this to happen?

“AI translations are already good enough to be implemented. Reddit very recently started offering AI-generated translations for all content on their platform. Regarding product recommendations: it’s on the Mapp roadmap for the next 1-2 years, and I doubt we are the only ones thinking about it.”

Can AI help in the possibly conflicting situation between Data Privacy and Personalization? Will there ever be a balance or even help from AI?

“It depends on whose interest you’re looking at. AI will be a major player on both sides. I predict that users will have their own AI agent that is trying to gather data for them while at the same time not revealing too much information. On the other hand, AI will try to figure out more about user preferences. Emotions can already be captured by AI via spoken language, so I think the constant tiptoeing between privacy and marketing will continue. And it will be fought with AI – on both sides.”

Can you also see a collaboration between those two? Customers benefit from better recommendations after all.

“I think regarding privacy, the consumer’s fear is less about companies – there is always the fear of data leaks or changes in government that are threatening data privacy. But as long as it is used for their own benefit, I don’t think anyone really minds receiving better recommendations.

This is how I imagine online shopping in the future: you tell your AI agent “hey, I would like to have a new pair of shorts”. The AI agent knows all the necessary details about you, your size, your style, and so on. It contacts other AI agents for shorts recommendation and comes back with some options. But this is still in the far future – nothing we will see very soon. An in the end, it will be beneficial for both parties.”

Generally, many businesses should have consolidated data as a priority for their foundations. Can AI help make it easier to consolidate data and reduce siloed data?

“Definitely! Artificial Intelligence makes it easier to build bridges between systems because the need for a complete API is reduced. AI agents will communicate with each other and map the information while speaking to each other. There is still authentication necessary, but systems will have an easier time to interconnect.”

Do you think we will say goodbye to APIs in the next 10 years?

“No, APIs will continue to exist, but AI will be helping to translate the information that is coming from the different system and vice versa. That’s how I envision it for Mapp as well.”

Do you think that AI will take over the communication between brand and customer or will it continue to be the middle player?

“That will be use case based. One day, you may be in the mood for online shopping and browsing. But the next day, you are busy and tell the agent, “hey, I need something, go and fetch it.” And for scenario two, direct communication between brand and customer is no longer needed. It will just be your AI agent and the brands’ AI agent. In that case, information is stripped from all marketing fluff and delivers pure information. I think it will come sooner than expected, when looking at recent updated such as Apple Intelligence.“

Can you describe an AI supported shopping experience in 2030?

Your clothing size will be identified by AI, making it easier to find the right product for you – you will immediately be notified if something is available in your size. Of course, the question on how much information you want to share with AI to receive good recommendations lingers above all this future talk.”

Do you think there will be a constant connection between physical stores and online? So that, if you try something on, AI is directly telling you it's not available in the store, but in stock online?

“Yes, that’s for sure. It’s like a bookshop experience where this information is quickly available – but right now, this still involves speaking to a real person. It may turn into looking into a mirror and it replies with “we don’t have this item in your size, but you can find it online.””

Are you excited for the AI powered future?

“It is still a double-edged sword – I’m very curious at least. I think we all are curious.”

Benjamin, thank you so much for taking the time to have a look together into the future of AI!