Top Retail Technology Startups in 2027

We measure data across the largest online retailers to give you the most complete view of trends and consumer shopping behavior. And we’re constantly evolving, not only in terms of what we measure, but in how our insights can help you make better decisions. Our products are supported by industry-leading data science practices and technology. The data algorithms and software we’ve developed aggregate, transform and connect the world’s largest knowledge base of e-commerce sales data into a single easy-to-use platform that empowers businesses to make more informed product, marketing and operations decisions.

TRANSFORMING THE WAY WE SHOP. INTERACT. CREATE. Bigtthinx AI is an award-winning deep technology company pioneering AI-native infrastructure for the global retail industry. Our AI technologies power digital apparel, synthetic humans, 3D commerce assets, and interactive experiences that redefine how the world shops, creates and engages digitally. We are trailblazing innovators, world-class engineers, and visionary creators - singularly focused and globally acclaimed.

Panoptyc is a startup focused on solving the $50 Billion retail theft problem using AI and computer vision. We have raised a pre-seed round and are amidst a large-scale pilot with a Fortune 100-esque company in addition to 30+ other customers. Struggling retailers who are facing decreasing sales and large risk in today's economy depend on Panoptyc to mitigate loss and maintain profitability.

The Leap Platform develops and operates retail stores for growing brands. By leveraging technology, world class store management and real estate expertise, Leap deploys branded retail stores with speed, efficiency and operational excellence. Leap’s aligned business model and platform approach make retail expansion turnkey and less risky, while helping brands drive profitable growth and acquire valuable customers. Leap is led by a team of serial entrepreneurs and retail experts and is backed by industry veterans and top investors. Discover Leap operated stores for Koio, Naadam & Floravere in New York City, Chicago, San Francisco and Miami. Learn more at: leapinc.com

Forerunner Ventures is an investment firm dedicated to partnering with ambitious entrepreneurs who are meeting the challenges and opportunities of today’s rapidly evolving digital commerce landscape. Investing in both B to C branded companies, as well as B to B tools & technologies driving efficiencies across the retailing value chain.

Markit is building the demand engine for the real world. Think Pokémon GO, but with e-gift cards. Today, businesses spend billions on digital advertising, paying for impressions, clicks, and engagement without knowing whether those interactions actually motivate people to show up. Meanwhile, consumers are constantly bombarded with ads that offer little immediate value. We're changing that. Markit is a location-based rewards platform that turns digital engagement into measurable real-world action. Consumers discover free e-gift cards, travel to designated locations, and unlock rewards by physically showing up. For businesses, Markit introduces a new approach to customer acquisition: pay for location-verified reward claims, not impressions or clicks. Brands can launch campaigns at virtually any geographic location, including their own storefronts, competitors' locations, events, and complementary businesses. They can offer multiple e-gift card brands, control campaign budgets and targeting, and capture opted-in customer leads for CRM follow-up. Our platform provides access to 300+ e-gift card brands enabling businesses to deploy campaigns without building traditional promotional partnerships. Markit is live on iOS and Android, with early enterprise adoption that includes one of the largest Panera Bread franchise operators in the United States. But our ambition extends beyond rewards. Our mission is simple: Make real-world engagement more rewarding for consumers and more measurable for businesses.

Aethreallegence builds Inventory Cognition Infrastructure for physical retail. Our platform continuously detects where inventory records drift from physical reality, a condition we call Inventory Truth Decay, and corrects it in real time using computer vision, voice-assisted onboarding, and our proprietary Curiosity Protocol anomaly engine. Physical stores lose revenue not because they lack cameras, but because no system holds the full environment in memory. Ours does. It tracks products across the entire store, back room, coolers, counter, floor, and doors, and surfaces exceptions only when human input is needed. Staff stop counting. Operators stop guessing. We are a woman-owned, patent-pending deep-tech startup based in Peoria, Illinois. We are building the inventory truth layer that retail infrastructure has never had.