STORY: Retailers across the U.S. are pulling out all the stops this Cyber ​​Monday, enticing consumers with great promotions and discounts on what is traditionally America’s biggest internet shopping day.

After weak Black Friday spending, retailers are turning to push notifications, emails and even artificial intelligence to attract shoppers.

Online retailers like Walmart and Amazon are relying on generative AI customer service and search capabilities to make it easier for shoppers to find products on websites and mobile apps.

“We use AI in many different ways at Amazon”

Amazon Vice President of Global Workplace Health and Safety Sarah Rhoads:

“One thing our customers will see this year is an AI-powered tool called Rufus, which you can see in our store. It’s actually in the top left corner of our stores. So maybe if a customer has a question about a product. If they have a question about sizing or are just looking for general gift ideas, they can use the AI-powered tool Rufus to help them.”

Salesforce estimates that retailers that used AI tools for customer service saw a 15% increase in purchase rates from users on Saturday.

Online spending is expected to reach $13.2 billion in the U.S. on Monday, according to preliminary estimates from Adobe. That’s 6% more than on Cyber ​​Monday a year earlier.

According to preliminary estimates from payment processor Mastercard, sales at brick-and-mortar stores rose just 0.7% year-over-year on Friday.

With many Americans carrying more debt lately, many are turning to third-party buy now, pay later services. Spending on these services is expected to be about $1 billion, according to Adobe forecasts.