Infobip predicts more than 7.3 billion customer interactions across Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2026, as AI and conversational channels transform how consumers discover products, receive offers and access support. New Infobip research also finds that 63.2% of consumers used an AI assistant or chatbot while shopping in the past 12 months.
Black Friday is no longer a single shopping event. Infobip’s research shows the shopping season now begins weeks earlier and continues throughout the customer journey. Nearly six in ten respondents start holiday shopping by early November, while only 19% wait until Black Friday week. This extended shopping window is putting new pressure on retailers to engage customers earlier, with better timing, more relevant offers, and frictionless support across the channels consumers already use.
AI is becoming central to that journey. According to the research, 63.2% of consumers have used an AI assistant or chatbot for shopping in the last 12 months, with 21.9% using one frequently. Among consumers willing to use AI for shopping, 73.4% would use it to compare products and 67.8% to find deals that match their preferences. However, the data also shows clear boundaries: consumers are more willing to let AI inform decisions than make decisions or handle complaints on their behalf.
The data suggests that while email remains a dominant channel for deals and updates, conversational and mobile channels are becoming increasingly important for time-sensitive, personalized retail engagement. Consumers selected email as the preferred channel for deals and updates globally, but they choose SMS far more often for updates than offers, suggesting retailers can build trust through transactional communications before expanding into promotional engagement.
Speed is also becoming a baseline expectation. Infobip’s survey found that 85% of consumers expect an order confirmation within five minutes, while 47% expect a support answer within five minutes. For retailers, this means AI and automation are no longer only tools for efficiency; they are becoming essential to meeting customer expectations during high-volume periods.
Goran Juršić, Chief Growth Officer at Infobip, said: “Black Friday is no longer a single day or even a single week. It has become an extended conversation between consumers and brands, beginning with discovery and continuing through purchase, delivery and support. AI gives retailers the opportunity to make those conversations faster, more relevant and more personal. The winners will not be the brands that send the most messages, but those that understand when, where and how each customer wants to engage.”
