Deep Research
Amazon Hikes, TikTok Shop Cuts: The May Fee Divergence
Amazon's 3.5% fuel surcharge expanded to Buy with Prime and Multi-Channel Fulfillment on May 2. TikTok Shop cut FBT fulfillment fees on 16–50lb SKUs by up to $5 per unit on May 20. Two platforms — same eighteen days — opposite bets on who absorbs cost.
AI Shoppers Now Outconvert Every Channel
Adobe's Q1 2026 data shows AI-referred retail traffic flipped from converting 38% worse than other channels to 42% better in twelve months. The story isn't about AI — it's about what AI did to the buyer before they clicked.
TikTok Shop's 180-Day Score Goes Live Before Q4
TikTok Shop is replacing its Violation Points system with a credit-style Account Health Rating in July. The 180-day rolling window means your first compliant summer becomes the only protection you have through Cyber Week.
Why Harry's $16 Drops Work Where Subscriptions Can't
A 13-year-old DTC razor brand is using 10,000-unit body-wash batches to pull in 25-to-34-year-olds. The mechanism is reproducible — the base case for using it isn't.
Influencer Trust Collapsed, AI Trust Is Next
A new Harris Poll survey finds 68% of US shoppers have lost trust in influencer recommendations in the past 12 months — and 75% say a single round of paid AI placements would cost AI agents the same standing. Cross-border sellers have a narrow window to be the trust layer that survives both collapses.