Costco Launches AI-Powered In-Store Personalized Ads to Boost Sales Conversion

On March 20, membership-based retail chain Costco announced the launch of a new AI-driven in-store advertising solution called "Reserved Display." The ad system is built on Costco's proprietary retail media technology platform, "Costco Velocity," and was developed in partnership with machine learning company Moloco. It aims to enhance sales conversion by analyzing users' actual purchasing behavior and delivering personalized product displays at key decision-making moments, rather than simply focusing on exposure. The advertising platform operates on a closed-loop data architecture and does not lease user data to third parties. Costco stated that advertisers can launch campaigns within minutes and monitor real-time impact on sales. The product is scheduled for testing in the second quarter of 2026 and will be made available to all retail media partners. This advertising upgrade builds on Costco's e-commerce personalization capabilities—its personalized product recommendation carousel had already driven over $470 million in e-commerce sales by Q2 2026. According to financial reports, Costco's U.S. comparable store sales grew 5.9% that quarter, with net sales reaching $68.2 billion and total paid membership rising to 82.1 million. [Source: Ebrun Go. An automated content generation tool developed by Ebrun, delivering e-commerce insights via algorithm. This AI writer is still in its early stages; feedback is welcome at run@ebrun.com or via comments.]