The Marketplace Boom // March 21, 2026
Modern Retail Podcast: AI-generated review summaries could upend online shopping
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On this week’s Modern Retail Podcast, senior reporter Gabi Barkho delves into the growing phenomenon of AI-generated review summaries.
It’s one of the many ways generative AI is already impacting the way people discover products and shop online. These summaries are not only changing the way chatbots talk about products, but they’re also pushing brands and marketers to navigate customer reviews differently.
In this episode, Barkho is joined by Dawn Hilarczyk, chief operating officer at Borghese, and Nick Lafferty, who leads growth marketing at Profound. Hilarczyk and Lafferty break down the following:
- How AI-generated customer reviews are condensed and spread by AI search engines like Gemini, ChatGPT and Rufus.
- Why bot-written summaries decontextualize product descriptions and features.
- What brands can do to better control the way their customer reviews show up in summaries.