Pod: Matt Nichols @ Commerce Ventures: A VC's View on Agentic Commerce, AI Checkout, and Much More
How AI shopping agents are forcing retailers to rethink everything from catalogs to checkout.
The VC That Sits In the Middle of Commerce Trends
Matt Nichols is a General Partner at Commerce Ventures, a $165M sector-focused fund investing in retail tech, fintech, and e-commerce enablement. With prior experience as a venture capitalist, operator, and CEO of a jewelry brand acquired by Berkshire Hathaway, Matt brings a unique dual-lens approach to backing transformative commerce infrastructure.
On top of seeing nearly every startup in the sector, many of Commerce Venture’s investors (LPs) are large players in the commerce space as well, so not only do they hear from the up-and-coming startups, but they hear what’s top of mind with the top payments companies, marketplaces and digital shopping players.
Listen/Watch Our Interview:
This week, we sit down with Matt Nichols to explore the AI-driven retail future already taking shape.
We discuss:
How agentic AI shopping is changing product discovery
What new infrastructure is needed for LLM-powered transactions
The role of enriched catalogs, AI-native ESPs, and low-inventory models
How retailers should think about exposing their data to AI platforms
Why some players (like Shopify or Amazon) may face a classic innovator’s dilemma
Matt also shares insights from Commerce Ventures’ portfolio and their strategic LP model, giving listeners a front-row seat to what’s next in retail tech.
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Up next…
In our next episode of Retailgentic, coming Thursday June 19th, we’ll be talking to an entrepreneur turned investor about the current ecommerce landscape. Stay tuned!