Ask shoppers about their beauty routine today, and you might be surprised: yes, skin care and fragrances, but also cold plunges, snail-mucin serums, and K-beauty products purchased via livestream. And soon, more consumers may start turning to AI agents to suss out products and make purchases. On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, McKinsey Partners Alexis Wolfer and Sara Hudson speak with Global Editorial Director Lucia Rahilly about McKinsey’s latest State of Beauty research—including what brands need to consider to win over both humans and algorithms.

The McKinsey Podcast is cohosted by Lucia Rahilly and Roberta Fusaro.

To watch the full-length version of this interview, please visit The McKinsey Podcast’s YouTube channel.

Any unanswered questions about this episode? Send them our way at: TheMcKinseyPodcast@mckinsey.com

Theme music composed, performed, and produced by Joy Ngiaw.

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What happens when AI agents can reason through problems well enough to complete real work on their own? This episode of The McKinsey Podcast offers answers to that question and more from OpenAI’s chair Bret Taylor, who is also cofounder of Sierra—which helps some of the world’s biggest companies build sophisticated AI agents, including about 40 percent of the Fortune 50. Taylor speaks with Eric Kutcher, McKinsey senior partner and chair of North America, about where AI is already reshaping customer service, sales, and software engineering; why open-weight models will always have a place despite the frontier labs’ cost advantage; and why he thinks the data center buildout—despite its real financial risk—is a bet the US needs to make.

In this recurring series on The McKinsey Podcast, Kutcher speaks with top CEOs about the practice of leadership.

The McKinsey Podcast is regularly cohosted by Lucia Rahilly and Roberta Fusaro.

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

What does a better life actually look like to Americans? The McKinsey Institute for Economic Mobility surveyed 30,000 of them and found that, despite today’s polarized discourse, two-thirds share the same top goal: financial security, regardless of race, income, or geography. On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, Senior Partner Diana Ellsworth and Partner JP Julien join Editorial Director Roberta Fusaro to explore findings from the survey—offering employers, educators, and policymakers a clearer picture of what would move the needle for many Americans.

The McKinsey Podcast is cohosted by Lucia Rahilly and Roberta Fusaro.

Any unanswered questions about this episode? Send them our way at: TheMcKinseyPodcast@mckinsey.com

Theme music composed, performed, and produced by Joy Ngiaw.

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information