Black Friday remained the moment of highest shopper intent during the 2025 Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend, but Saturday emerged as the busiest day for research, according to Bluecore’s analysis of its AI shopping agent alby and wider platform data. The company found AI-driven question volume and engagement surged across the weekend, signalling that shoppers used conversational AI to validate higher‑stakes purchase decisions before converting. [1][2][3]

According to the original report, Bluecore analysed more than 1 million alby conversations, 27 million customer e-commerce interactions, 1.95 billion shopper events, 3.7 million orders and $531 million in total sales across 144 retail brands to compile the findings. The dataset showed freeform questions rose 57% against a mid‑week baseline, while question widget views climbed from roughly 1.6 million (Mon–Thurs average) to 2.4 million on Black Friday. [2][3]

Bluecore reported that Saturday (29 November) recorded the highest daily question count , 278,911 questions , eclipsing Black Friday’s 254,781, a pattern the company interprets as peak comparison and research behaviour occurring after Black Friday’s primary purchasing spike. Engagement levels, the report noted, remained elevated and near‑identical across Black Friday and Saturday, underscoring that BFCM is now a multi‑day decision window rather than a single‑day event. [1][2][3]

The analysis highlighted category differences in how shoppers used AI: furniture shoppers probed assembly and weight capacity, sporting‑goods customers queried skill‑level fit, and parents checked safety certifications such as FAA approval for travel seats , examples Bluecore cited to illustrate alby’s role in resolving purchase friction. Sports and hobbies retailers posted the largest average order value gains, with AOV up substantially year‑on‑year during the event. [1][2][3]

Bluecore framed these outcomes as evidence that AI has shifted from novelty to a core part of the retail sales floor. Speaking in Bluecore’s release, Fayez Mohamood, Bluecore’s chief executive, said: "The numbers don’t lie, as this Black Friday proved that AI has become the new sales floor expert. Shoppers aren’t just browsing websites anymore; they’re actively researching products and asking detailed questions about everything from assembly requirements to waterproof ratings." The company said alby’s proactive and contextual capabilities are designed to emulate an experienced in‑store associate while capturing insights to refine future experiences. [1][5]

Bluecore outlined its methodology in the report, noting the analysis drew on 22.5 million first‑party cookies and classified the 144 brands into enterprise and mid‑market cohorts for comparative benchmarking. The company positioned the findings as part of broader platform capabilities , combining predictive AI, live product catalogues and personalised messaging to convert intent when shoppers are most likely to buy. Industry data and Bluecore’s prior benchmarking suggest higher identification and retention among enterprise retailers can further amplify conversion during peak periods. [3][6][4]

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##Reference Map:

  • [1] (Martechcube) - Paragraph 1, Paragraph 3, Paragraph 4, Paragraph 5
  • [2] (Bluecore press release) - Paragraph 1, Paragraph 2, Paragraph 3, Paragraph 4, Paragraph 5
  • [3] (Bluecore Black Friday Benchmarks) - Paragraph 2, Paragraph 3, Paragraph 6
  • [5] (Bluecore press about alby) - Paragraph 5
  • [6] (Bluecore predictive AI) - Paragraph 6
  • [4] (Bluecore 2023 insights) - Paragraph 6

Source: Noah Wire Services