August wrap-up | Why we love ‘boring AI’
By Jon Taylor on August 29, 2025In a world where artificial intelligence is increasingly defined by glitz — by talking avatars, deepfake dramas, and algorithmic hallucinations — Richard Potter is unapologetically obsessed with something far less headline-grabbing: making businesses quietly, measurably better.
“When we founded Peak back in 2015,” he says, “the problem we saw was clear. Businesses were sitting on huge volumes of data, but very few had the tools or expertise to turn that data into real commercial outcomes.” It’s a deceptively simple statement — the kind that hides a revolution.
Richard has spent the past decade building AI not for viral moments, but for the underpinnings of modern commerce: inventory optimization, dynamic pricing, smarter supply chains. His goal? Not to amaze, but to integrate. “We believed every business needed its own AI,” he explains. “AI built for their business, with their data — not just generic models.”
Industry spotlight
Retail
The silent margin killer: how data latency undermines your promotions
In retail pricing and promotional planning, timing is everything. A 10% price drop taken one week too late can cost more margin than a 30% drop taken just-in-time. But data latency means that retailers don’t have the operational infrastructure or the confidence to act fast. Tom Summerfield, Peak’s Retail Director, explains how brands can overcome this silent margin killer
Peak in Paris: See you soon at NRF 2025, Retail’s Big Show Europe!
We’re exhibiting at NRF Europe 2025, as ‘Retail’s Big Show’ heads to Europe for the very first time on 16-18 September. We’re regulars at the annual expo in New York, and we’re looking forward to heading over to Paris for Europe’s premier international retail gathering. The Peak team will be on hand at Booth 6 K 144, demonstrating our ten years of experience in driving real results for retailers in areas like pricing optimization and inventory management. If you’re heading to Paris, be sure to book some time in with our team via the link below.
Manufacturing
The cognitive layer: how AI-optimized supply chain decisions enable true manufacturing autonomy
Factories are getting smarter, but true manufacturing autonomy requires more than robots and sensors. The missing piece? AI-optimized supply chain decisions. In our latest blog, we explore how the “cognitive layer” bridges physical automation with intelligent decision making, enabling manufacturers to cut costs, boost agility and move closer to the “lights-out” factory vision.
Catch us at AMG’s Smart Manufacturing Food & Beverage Europe event
Margins are under pressure for food and beverage manufacturers — rising costs, supply chain disruption and labor shortages mean transformation is critical. Join Peak in London on 25 September to see how AI is already helping brands like PepsiCo, Molson Coors and Hain Celestial cut costs, optimize inventories and boost productivity.
Product news
See the impact of every S&OP decision before you act
Meet the latest addition to Peak’s Inventory AI product! Scenario Planning is an exciting new capability that empowers teams to model, simulate and co-create critical supply chain scenarios to drive faster, smarter sales and operations planning with AI. Using an agentic chat interface that helps you quickly define and simulate outcomes, take your analysis one step further with AI-generated impact reports that can be shared with your teams. Collaborate directly within the platform, co-create reports with stakeholders and refine them in real time. Push approved plans directly into operational systems, accelerating alignment and execution.
On our radar
What’s caught our eye this month?
- Tips for merchandisers to trade smarter, not harder
- Chris Ashley talks predictive and agentic AI with AI Tech Park
- Helping retailers prep for October payday
- Celebrating 20 years of UiPath
- AI-powered art, by Royal appointment
- Welcoming Michael Atalla, new UiPath CMO!
- ChatGPT ruining AI romances (yep, it’s as weird as it sounds)
- Looking ahead to UiPath Fusion in Las Vegas!
This month's featured content
WATCH: How The Body Shop powers pricing and promotion performance with AI
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Manufacturing: Using AI to optimize inventory management
