Gladly, a customer experience AI platform utilized by prominent retail and consumer brands, has introduced new agentic commerce capabilities at its annual Gladly Connect Live conference. These updates extend the platform's reach across the entire customer lifecycle, covering pre-purchase research, discovery, and post-sale retention. The announcement comes as AI-driven traffic to U.S. retail sites has surged by 393% in early 2026, while global customer experience scores have reached a multi-year low. Gladly aims to close this performance gap by prioritizing long-term customer knowledge over isolated session data.
AI traffic to U.S. retail websites grew 393% in the first quarter of 2026.
Gladly’s new "Agentic Commerce" integrates AI across the full journey, from discovery to retention.
The platform now supports brand-owned surfaces and external AI platforms like ChatGPT and Gemini.
An "AI Performance Loop" was introduced to autobuild agents and provide plain-language analytics.
A new collaboration model allows AI to lead conversations and loop in humans for specific judgment calls.
Gladly’s technology is anchored to the individual person rather than individual chat sessions.
The new agentic capabilities are designed to provide a seamless experience regardless of where a consumer interacts with a brand. As shoppers increasingly use AI search engines and chatbots to make purchasing decisions, Gladly is ensuring that brand data is accessible on those external surfaces as well as on a company's own website. By moving away from session-based interactions, the platform allows for proactive engagement that recognizes a customer's history, helping to build brand devotion rather than simply resolving a single ticket.
"A sales AI that only sees the pre-purchase moment knows the session. That's it," said Charlie Besecker, CEO of Gladly. "Real usefulness requires knowing the customer — not just the moment. At the end of any conversation, consumers don't remember whether they were talking to a sales AI or a support AI. They remember whether the brand knew them."
To ensure continuous improvement, Gladly introduced the AI Performance Loop, which enables brands to automatically build AI agents from their internal documentation. This feature set includes at-scale testing and automated monitoring to maintain quality. Furthermore, Gladly is refining the relationship between human agents and AI. In this new model, the AI manages the bulk of the dialogue but transitions to a human team member for specific approvals or exceptions. Once the human intervention is complete, the AI resumes the conversation to bring it to a close.
These updates directly respond to Forrester data indicating a decline in global CX scores every year since 2021. By focusing on engagement rather than deflection, Gladly seeks to help brands utilize AI to drive lasting business value and cost savings. The platform remains a primary choice for customer-centric organizations looking to navigate the complexities of modern, AI-assisted retail environments.
About Gladly
For business leaders who want to get AI right, Gladly is the only customer experience AI that delivers the cost savings you need AND the customer devotion that drives lasting business value. Trusted by the world's most customer-centric brands — including Crate & Barrel, Breeze Airways, and Ulta Beauty — Gladly is purpose-built to engage customers, not deflect them.
TechIntelPro empowers B2B technology decision-makers with the latest industry trends, deep insights, leadership perspectives and actionable intelligence to drive both organizational and professional milestones—and thrive on the tech pulse.