TODAY’S MAZE
Robots left the lab and entered the marketplace. Meanwhile, AI is rewiring how products move and how platforms treat sellers and shoppers. The week brought seismic shifts in how tech giants and startups approach automation, security, and trust. From humanoid robots to algorithmic supply chains, every click and delivery is being reimagined. Welcome to your Sunday Ecommerce briefing.
+ 15 other handpicked news from the last week you need to know 🔥
LET’S ENTER THE MAZE!
- Artur Stańczuk, MarketMaze Founder
🌀 MAZE STORY
🤖 Alibaba's Robot Leap
The briefing: Alibaba is stepping out of the cloud and into the real world. It has created a Robotics and Embodied AI unit under its Qwen language‑model team and is funding hardware ventures. The company wants to own both the software and the humanoid hardware that will run it.
On 9 October 2025, Alibaba announced its Robotics and Embodied AI Group under Qwen, signaling a shift from pure software to physical robots.
Alibaba Cloud led a $140 million Series A+ in X Square Robot in 2023, financing the Quanta X2 humanoid robot priced around $80 000 and helping the start‑up raise $280 million.
Citigroup projects the humanoid robotics market to hit $7 trillion by 2050, and SoftBank’s $5.4 billion purchase of ABB’s robotics arm underscores the race for AI‑powered hardware.
Why it matters: When the world’s largest e‑commerce company starts building robots, it’s not a side hustle. For consumers, it could mean service bots in stores and elder‑care sooner than you think. Competitors like Amazon and JD will face pressure to match the hardware‑software integration. Investors should note that the next trillion‑dollar market may be tangible, not virtual.
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🌀 MAZE STORY
⚙️ AI Runs Walmart
The briefing: Walmart isn’t just ordering more AI; it’s making AI order everything. The world’s biggest retailer has woven machine learning, computer vision and generative algorithms into forecasting, inventory and logistics. In Bentonville, code is now as important as concrete.
Walmart uses multi‑horizon recurrent neural networks to forecast demand for its 10 500 stores, reducing waste and replenishing stock.
Agentic AI and computer vision systems now manage inventory and route warehouse workers when disruptions hit, while generative models tell robots where to pick and pack.
Adaptive large‑neighbourhood search algorithms optimise trucking routes and divert shipments around port strikes or storms, with digital twins simulating the network.
Why it matters: Retail’s low‑margin business depends on squeezing pennies out of operations. If AI can prevent stockouts and cut miles driven, Walmart’s scale turns tiny percentage gains into billions. Rivals like Amazon and Target will have to keep up or be out‑optimised. Shoppers may not see the algorithms, but they’ll feel the difference when shelves stay full and deliveries arrive on time.
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📰 Ecommerce Players Briefing
🛒 General Ecommerce (Mass Platforms)
🇧🇷 VTEX data leak exposed 6M shoppers. Researchers found an open VTEX container exposing six million shoppers’ personal data and purchase histories, prompting security concerns and reputational damage.
🇩🇪 Germany probes Temu pricing rules. Germany’s cartel office opened a case into Temu over suspected price‑fixing clauses that may force sellers to keep prices high across platforms, raising regulatory pressure.
🇬🇧 eBay's £3m AI Activate plan. eBay is offering up to 10,000 UK small businesses free access to ChatGPT Enterprise and training for a year to accelerate AI adoption and boost productivity.
🇩🇪 Retailers call for anti‑counterfeit action. German brand and retail associations demand tougher customs, the abolition of the €150 duty‑free limit and stay‑down rules as fake goods flood the EU and threaten jobs.
🇩🇪 Why Amazon sellers are leaving. A merchants’ poll cites poor support, fraud, opaque AI decisions, illegal competition and rising ad costs as reasons for quitting Amazon, though most remain for the reach.
🇺🇸 Amazon hides orders no more. Amazon removed its order‑archiving feature, meaning shoppers can’t hide purchases; the only workaround is separate accounts or Amazon Household.
🇵🇱 Allegro debuts OdZyskaj service. Polish platform Allegro teamed up with Valyuu to let consumers sell used electronics with free shipping, a seven‑day valuation and payment within three days.
🇮🇳 Super.money ties up with Juspay. Flipkart’s fintech arm Super.money partnered with payments firm Juspay for its Breeze checkout, as it handles 200 million UPI transactions monthly and aims for $100 million revenue.
🇮🇳 India probes e‑commerce surcharges. The Consumer Affairs ministry is investigating Amazon and Flipkart for extra fees on cash‑on‑delivery orders and other dark patterns, warning of penalties for deceptive pricing.
👗Vertical Ecommerce (Fashion, Home, Beauty)
🇺🇸 Trump touts Pfizer discount deal. Donald Trump announced Pfizer will offer discounted drugs via TrumpRx and sell to Medicaid at a most‑favoured‑nation rate, though specifics remain vague.
🇺🇸 Amazon Pharmacy kiosks at clinics. One Medical offices will host Amazon Pharmacy kiosks from December 2025, letting patients pick up prescriptions minutes after appointments to improve medication adherence.
🇩🇪 Momox’s AI pricing tool. Recommerce firm Momox launched an image‑recognition tool that analyses colours, patterns and fit to price secondhand fashion more accurately and speed up listings.
🇬🇧 Depop revenue up, losses narrow. Depop’s revenue jumped 42 % to £101.6 million in 2024 while net losses fell to £40.44 million, signalling efficiency gains even as the resale app remains in the red.
🇬🇧 Frasers buys majority of The Webster. Frasers Group acquired a majority stake in Miami luxury retailer The Webster, giving it entry into North America while founder Laure Hériard Dubreuil stays on as CEO.
🇫🇷 Vestiaire names Bernard Osta CEO. Luxury resale platform Vestiaire Collective promoted former CFO Bernard Osta to CEO to lead an AI‑driven growth roadmap, boost authentication and push toward profitability.
🇺🇸 eBay partners with GFA on circular fashion. eBay joined Global Fashion Agenda as a strategic partner, pledging to share data and support resale initiatives as the second‑hand market is projected to reach $350 billion by 2028.
🇧🇪 Vinted Go launches Belgian lockers. Vinted Go opened its first locker in Belgium and plans 500 in the Netherlands, expanding a network that already covers 62 % of France’s population within a seven‑minute walk. of private label sales via Test & React. 👉 Apparel Resources
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