Today I'm unpacking a fascinating shift happening right under our noses in retail media — what has been coined “dark search.” I explore how AI-driven discovery is quietly reshaping the way consumers find and buy products. The big question: is this trend actually helping retail media grow, or is it eroding the very signals it depends on?

I dive into two new pieces of research that seem to tell completely different stories: one suggesting AI is expanding the e-commerce pie, and the other arguing we’re flying blind when it comes to measuring its true impact. If you’re in retail, e-commerce, or media, this episode will challenge how you think about attribution, conversion, and the future of shopper behavior.

This episode is sponsored by Mirakl Ads

Timeline

[00:00] – Why I’m cautious about extrapolating from my own shopping habits and how the Hawthorne Effect plays into consumer behavior
[00:45] – The “dark search” moment: how AI influenced my purchase before I ever hit a retailer’s site
[02:01] – Criteo’s report: AI-driven traffic converts 1.5x higher and lands directly on product pages
[03:45] – RefiBuy’s findings: up to 70% of AI-influenced traffic is invisible to analytics tools
[05:00] – The shocking conversion rates of “dark” AI traffic and what that means for retailers
[06:30] – Reconciling two opposing views: AI growth vs. measurement blind spots
[08:00] – Why this shift could be a structural threat to retail media economics

Links & Resources

• Read Criteo's 2026 Commerce & AI Trend Report
• Read ReFiBuy's DACT piece by Scot Wingo on LinkedIn: Dark Agentic Commerce Traffic (DACT): Answer Engines Are Sending High-Intent Shoppers to your PDPs, But Your Analytics Miss >70%
• Read my related articles:
  • ‘Dark Search’ Is Making AI-Facilitated Commerce Look Smaller Than It Really Is
  • Dark Search, Broken Signals, and What Comes Next for Retail Media
  • Agentic Commerce Is a Sequencing Problem, Not an Existential One
• I'm hosting a LIVE event with In-Store Marketplace and Catalyst Media Consulting on April 22 about In-Store Retail Media: are we measuring the wrong things? We'll discuss New Research on the state of in-store retail media measurement — and why the path forward may actually be simpler than the industry is making it. REGISTER HERE
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• Follow Kiri Masters on LinkedIn