TL;DR
Accenture Ventures has invested in Profitmind, an agent-based AI platform that automates pricing, inventory and planning for retailers. Salesforce data cited in the source suggests AI agents already drove a significant share of 2025 holiday commerce, underscoring the strategic push toward automated retail decision-making.
What happened
Accenture's venture arm has taken a stake in Profitmind, a startup that uses agent-style AI to automate merchandising tasks including pricing, inventory management and planning. Company and Accenture executives describe Profitmind as a system that consolidates multiple data sources to generate prioritized, actionable recommendations for retailers; the firms did not disclose financial terms of the deal. Profitmind's CEO said the platform also tracks competitor assortments and pricing in real time and can produce product copy designed to perform better with AI-driven search agents. Accenture was framed as bringing transformation and implementation capabilities to help scale Profitmind to larger, global retail clients. Microsoft plans to showcase Profitmind running on Azure at the upcoming National Retail Federation event and highlight joint implementation support through its partner channels.
Why it matters
- Automating pricing and inventory decisions could speed retailers' responses to market shifts and competitive moves.
- Agent-based AI that links multiple data streams aims to translate insights into prioritized, executable actions.
- Partnerships with consultancies and cloud providers signal a route to faster enterprise adoption and implementation.
- Salesforce holiday data cited in the source indicates AI agents are already influencing a sizable portion of online shopping.
Key facts
- Accenture Ventures provided the funding for Profitmind; terms of the investment were not released.
- Profitmind is described as an agent-based platform that automates pricing decisions, inventory management and planning.
- Accenture's global retail lead said the platform connects data across sources to produce trusted, prioritized recommendations.
- Profitmind CEO Mark Chrystal said the product monitors competitors in real time and can generate GEO-optimized product copy.
- Salesforce reported that AI and AI agents drove about $262 billion—roughly 20%—of 2025 holiday online spending.
- Salesforce found online holiday sales totaled $1.29 trillion globally in 2025, with US online sales reaching $294 billion.
- Retailers that deployed their own AI agents—examples cited include Pandora, SharkNinja and Funko—averaged 6.2% holiday sales growth versus 3.9% for companies that did not.
- Salesforce noted AI agents performed 142% more tasks, such as updating delivery addresses and initiating returns, compared with the prior two months.
- Microsoft will demonstrate Profitmind on Azure at the National Retail Federation show and detail partner support options.
What to watch next
- The demonstration of Profitmind on Azure at the upcoming National Retail Federation event and any implementation details shown.
- Whether Accenture integrates Profitmind into its broader retail transformation services and client engagements.
- not confirmed in the source: whether the investment represents a minority stake, strategic partnership, or plans for full acquisition.
- not confirmed in the source: concrete customer ROI and performance metrics from large-scale retail deployments beyond examples noted.
Quick glossary
- Agent-based AI: A class of AI systems that use autonomous 'agents' which perceive environments, make decisions, and take actions to fulfill goals on behalf of users or businesses.
- Pricing optimization: Techniques and systems that analyze data to recommend or set prices intended to maximize revenue, margin or other business objectives.
- Inventory management: Processes and tools used to track, replenish and plan stock to meet demand while controlling costs and availability.
- Generative Engine Optimization (GEO): A term referring to tailoring product descriptions or content so that generative AI search agents are more likely to find and recommend those products.
Reader FAQ
Who invested in Profitmind?
Accenture Ventures provided the funding.
What does Profitmind do?
The platform automates pricing, inventory and planning tasks and monitors competitor pricing and assortments in real time.
Were the terms of the investment disclosed?
No, the companies did not release the terms of the deal.
Is there evidence AI is affecting retail sales?
The source cites a Salesforce study reporting AI agents drove about $262 billion, roughly 20% of 2025 holiday online spend.
Will Accenture acquire Profitmind?
not confirmed in the source
APPLICATIONS Accenture bets AI will ring up retail sales with Profitmind investment Let the bots figure out what to sell for how much O'Ryan Johnson Fri 9 Jan 2026 // 23:03 UTC Accenture is…
Sources
- Accenture bets AI will ring up retail sales with Profitmind investment
- Accenture Invests in Profitmind to Drive Agentic AI …
- Accenture invests in retail focused AI company Profitmind
- Exclusive: Accenture Takes Stake in Profitmind
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