Inflections in AI Inflection & Importance across Consumer (November Update, Quarter-Zips & Matcha on Black Friday)

By David Schick and Jonathan Feeney and David Katzman and Jack Hermann Published on November 28, 2025 PDF

AI platforms are increasingly impacting consumer choices.

In this November report, we update and expand our October analysis to 88 names, see summary Figure 1. We calculate both the relative (a) inflection of AI-driven traffic and (b) importance of AI engagement within the digital engagement of consumers.

Consumers are increasingly using AI platforms. 74% of the age 18-29 cohort use AI “at least several times a week” compared to 46% of the 65+ cohort, according to Pew Research (see Figure 2).

Key Callouts: WMT, LOW, BBY continue the relative strength we called out in October. Meaningful positive inflection and importance include BBY, KTB, ONON; meaningful negative inflection and important at CHH and BIRK. AMZN has negative inflection and a fairly limited importance of AI-driven traffic. In the attached note, we rank AI inflection and importance across 88 names in Retail, Restaurants, Leisure / Travel, Autos, and Apparel.

To prove our trendiness cred, we submit that we know about quarter-zips (and matcha). If AI can somehow tell folks how to get better at pullups, you can be sure it’s a growing part of consumer decision-making (Figure 3). AI platforms are sending shopping consumers to different brands and retailers. This new battleground could have a meaningful impact on revenue, share, brand, and ad revenue over time. We do note lots of quarter zips front and center across apparel retail in our Black Friday store visits.

Holidays extra content … we realize analyzing the importance of and inflection in AI for Consumer rhymes a little with Dead Poets Society (we promise, this was unintentional). You know, the scene where the substitute poetry teacher uses a fictional J. Evans Pritchard calculation for a poem’s “greatness” by multiplying the “perfection” on the horizontal axis and the “importance” on the vertical axis.

Figure 1: Measuring Inflection and Importance of AI Across Consumer, November 2025

Source: Optimal Advisory Analysis, Similarweb

Figure 2: Demographics of AI Use, Pew Research

Source: Pew Research

Figure 3: Where Should I Buy a Quarter-Zip?

Source: ChatGPT

Optimal Nov Consumer AI Resonance Download

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