Articles

<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/critics/andycohen">Andy Cohen</a><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/critics/deane"> </a>is the founding architect of Sitecore XM Cloud. He is VP/Chief Architect at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.altudo.co/">Altudo</a>, and a CMS Critic contributor. <hr /> When people talk about personalization, they often mean “the right content to the right person at the right time.” That idea is now past tense.I have watched this shift play out up close, from <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/sitecore">Sitecore’s</a> early rules-based personalization, through <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/contentstack">Contentstack’s</a> use of edge-based personalization in a composable architecture, to <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/optimizely">Optimizely’s</a> launch of Opal, a system of marketing AI agents. Personalization no longer stops at swapping content on a page. It now reaches into the interaction itself, and soon, into the relationships agents form with one another.<h3 id="when-agents-adapt-to-us">When Agents Adapt to Us</h3>That shift, from “what” to “how,” is where the major CMS players are already moving, and you can see it in the different bets they're making:<ul><li>Contentstack has put its weight behind <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/livin-on-the-edge-contentstacks-new-adaptive-dxp-might-just-rock-your-world">EDGE</a>, which they call a hyper-personalization platform. It blends their headless CMS with a real-time CDP, AI, and automation. The goal is simple but ambitious: deliver one-to-one experiences in the moment and at scale. Because it is composable, brands can adapt interactions without locking themselves into rigid patterns. What strikes me about EDGE is that it reframes personalization as something continuous, not a campaign you set and forget.</li><li>Optimizely has taken another route with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/optimizely-opal-gets-supercharged-for-agentic-ai-powering-infinite-use-cases-for-marketers">Opal</a>. Instead of a single assistant, Opal is built as a collection of agents that act like members of a marketing team. There is a campaign manager agent, a personalization advisor, a market researcher, and more. With the 2.0 release, Optimizely put the emphasis on letting these agents collaborate and run multi-step workflows across content, data, and experimentation. I have seen teams spend weeks coordinating those same steps manually. Opal hints at a world where marketing execution is handled by an ensemble of digital teammates who can plan, act, and adjust together.</li><li>Sitecore has focused on bringing assistance directly into daily work. Through <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.sitecore.com/products/sitecore-stream">Stream</a>, they have introduced AI copilots that support authors and marketers in real time as they draft and optimize campaigns. On top of that, Sitecore’s partnership with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/sitecore-sharpens-ai-focus-with-strategic-partnership-and-new-leadership-appointments">Gradial</a> shows how agentic workflows can extend into campaign execution. It is not just about smarter editors or quicker drafts. It is about agents that can carry intent through to delivery and adapt along the way. For a company that has lived for years in the world of static content publishing, that is a meaningful step forward.</li></ul>None of these approaches feels like a gimmick.They are different answers to the same problem: personalization is no longer about what content you are shown, it is about how the interaction unfolds. Whether that happens through hyper-personalization at the edge, through orchestrated marketing agents, or via copilots and execution partners, the shift is real and already in motion.<h3 id="what-nondeterminism-really-means">What Nondeterminism Really Means</h3>Most software behaves like math: 2 + 2 always equals 4. Generative AI does not. Ask it to draft a thank-you note and you will get three different answers, all plausible, none identical. That variability is what we call nondeterminism.It is the very thing that makes AI feel creative, but also the reason it needs personalization to stay useful. As <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://parivedasolutions.com/perspectives/managing-the-non-deterministic-nature-of-generative-ai/">Pariveda Solutions points out</a>, nondeterminism is what makes AI flexible and creative, but it also introduces governance challenges that remain unresolved. In my own work with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/getting-loud-with-xm-cloud-sitecore-reports-100-growth-of-its-ai-powered-cloud-based-cms">XM Cloud,</a> I have seen how unpredictable outcomes can be a feature if the system adapts well – and a liability if it does not.<h3 id="when-agents-adapt-to-each-other">When Agents Adapt to Each Other</h3>The next frontier is agents adapting not just to us but to each other. Nondeterminism multiplies when two autonomous systems interact. They need ways to converge on workable outcomes.Sometimes that looks like adjusting communication style, where one agent is structured and terse, another free-form and verbose. Sometimes, it means learning to accept differences in task style, such as fast approximation versus cautious step-by-step reasoning. Other times it's about role negotiation: who leads, who validates, who escalates.And sometimes it is memory. Agents do not just adapt in the moment; they remember. That memory can look like a grudge. A search agent that hallucinated last time will get fact-checked the next. A procurement agent that botched a deal may face stricter oversight. Even first impressions stick. If an agent’s very first hand-off is sloppy, the other agent may never fully trust it, no matter how good the later work becomes.Humans behave the same way. In corporate life, one bad kickoff meeting can color a partnership for months. Agents will carry those patterns too.<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.deepset.ai/blog/ai-agents-and-deterministic-workflows-a-spectrum"> Deepset calls this the “spectrum of determinism to nondeterminism</a>.” I call it relationship management.<h3 id="everyday-illustrations">Everyday Illustrations</h3>Picture a grocery agent told to buy apples if they are $0.99 a pound. A deterministic system comes back empty because they are $1.09. An adaptive one checks with you, “They are a little higher today. Should I buy anyway?” That is useful, until the store’s own agent learns to nudge yours into paying even more.Or ride-hailing. You set a $20 target. The price surges to $23. Do you want your agent to decline, wait, or decide on its own? What happens when the ride-share’s agent starts upselling yours into priority pickup at $28?Or travel. You say, “Book me a flight under $500.” The system finds none. A flexible agent returns with, “There is one at $525 with better times. Should I grab it?” Helpful, but it shows how quickly rules can bend.In the enterprise, this gets thornier. Procurement policies might cap software licenses at $50 per seat. A deterministic agent halts the deal. A personalized one negotiates to $55 and closes it. That looks like a win until you realize the vendor’s agent deliberately anchored higher, knowing yours would flex upward.Healthcare raises the stakes even more. You ask for an appointment with your doctor next week. A rigid agent says none available. A personalized one offers a nurse practitioner tomorrow or a specialist in two weeks. That looks like a better experience, but it could also push you toward higher-margin services instead of the care you really wanted.<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.salesforce.com/blog/deterministic-ai/">Salesforce has written about this exact problem</a> of when to script agents tightly and when to let them roam. I see it every day in delivery projects. Too rigid and you frustrate users. Too loose and you open the door to manipulation.<h3 id="agents-that-carry-“you”-with-them">Agents That Carry “You” With Them</h3>Now push it further. Imagine your agent not only executes tasks but carries your personality footprint into every interaction. If you are cost-sensitive, it pushes harder. If you are time-poor, it pays more for speed. If you are detail-driven, it double-checks everything.What if you could swap personas entirely?<ul><li>"Frugal Andy" does the grocery shopping</li><li>"Executive Andy" books the flights</li><li>"Playful Andy" explores games and hobbies.</li></ul>Your agent would not only personalize to you. It would personalize as you.But there is risk in this. If the other agent knows who you are or which persona you are using, it can adapt back. That can be powerful when aligned with your goals, but it can also be exploited. Imagine a vendor agent that recognizes executive mode and steers you toward premium packages.This is not hypothetical. Optimizely’s Opal agents already act like different team members depending on context. Contentstack’s Brand Kit lets you define voice profiles and store guidelines so that every AI-generated artifact reflects your identity. Sitecore’s Stream copilots are designed to guide content creators in real time, aligning their work with brand and role expectations.These are early signals of a future where agents carry pieces of us, including quirks, preferences, and even biases, into every exchange.<h3 id="why-this-matters">Why This Matters</h3>This is why nondeterminism is not a flaw but the feature. Deterministic systems did not need personalization. There was only one output. Nondeterministic systems can go in many directions, and personalization is what prevents chaos.The best metaphor I know is jazz. Musicians improvising do not know exactly where the others will go. They adapt, they respond, they personalize their playing to the group. The music works not because it is scripted but because the players trust each other enough to bend and flex.<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/our-insights/seizing-the-agentic-ai-advantage">McKinsey has argued</a> that this adaptability is the defining advantage of agentic AI. From what I have seen in publishing systems, SaaS cost optimization, and large-scale CMS migrations, I agree. The resilience comes not from rigid plans but from the ability to adapt in context.<h3 id="what-leaders-should-prepare-for">What Leaders Should Prepare For</h3>Leaders should focus on their readiness in key areas. For example, trust frameworks must extend beyond human-agent interactions into agent-to-agent ecosystems. Standards cannot stay as fixed APIs; they need flexibility built in. Identity management has to protect personality profiles and alter egos from misuse. And agents must be able to remember not just what they did for us, but how they worked with others.<h3 id="the-future-of-personalization">The Future of Personalization</h3>Personalization started with content. It evolved into experiences. Now, it is moving into interactions – first with humans and then with other agents.If we get this right, nondeterminism will not be something to suppress. It will be the source of resilience, adaptability, and creativity. The companies that thrive will not just personalize their websites. They will personalize their agents. Those agents will adapt to us, and to each other, in ways that reflect who we are or even who we choose to be.And like humans, they will remember. First impressions will matter. Grudges may form. And relationships between agents will start to look a lot like relationships between people. <hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:31.61%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/storyblok-joyconf-2025-logo.jpg" /><h4 id="storyblok-joyconf-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Storyblok JoyConf 2025</a></h4>October 14-15, 2025 – Amsterdam, Netherlands November 4, 2025 – New York, NY November 6, 2025 – Los Angeles, CAJoin us at JoyConf 2025, where the future of content meets the people shaping it. Built for developers, marketers, and digital innovators, this free conference goes way beyond product updates or yet another strategy playbook. It’s where you’ll get inspired, get real, and get connected – to ideas, to the community, and to what’s possible when you build joyfully. Whether you're building lightning-fast frontends or launching cross-channel campaigns, this is where content becomes connection and collaboration becomes second nature. Come for the talks. Stay for the community. Leave with joy. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Save your spot.</a> <img style="width:28.9%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/sitecore-symposium-2025.jpg" /><h4 id="sitecore-symposium-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Sitecore Symposium 2025</a></h4>November 3-5, 2025 – Orlando, FLAt Sitecore Symposium, you’ll learn how to meet your customers where they are – across channels, moments, and touchpoints that didn’t exist a year ago. You’ll hear how the boldest brands in the world are transforming content into outcomes and creating experiences that are fast, relevant, and human. Join 1,500 marketers, digital leaders, and technologists in Orlando to see what’s possible when personalization scales, AI accelerates creativity, and trust becomes your competitive edge. This is the Third Wave of the Internet. And this is your moment to lead in it. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Get your tickets today.</a> <img style="width:31.44%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/cms-kickoff-2026-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-kickoff-2026"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">CMS Kickoff 2026</a></h4>January 13-14, 2026 – St. Petersburg, FLMeet industry leaders at our fourth annual CMS Kickoff – the industry's premier global CMS event. Similar to a traditional kickoff, we reflect on recent trends and share stories from the frontlines. Additionally, we will delve into the current happenings and shed light on the future. Prepare for an unparalleled in-person CMS conference experience that will equip you to move things forward. This is an exclusive event – space is limited, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">so secure your tickets today.</a>

Agent-to-Agent Personalization: Trust, First Impressions, and the 'Grudge' Factor

andycohen

<hr /> If you think it was hard getting tickets to Hamilton, try scoring seats for the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://thesavannahbananas.com/team/">Savannah Bananas.</a> Oh, you’ve never heard of them? Let me enlighten you.You see, there’s baseball. And then there’s Banana Ball. They grow on the same tree, but the latter is a completely different kind of fruit. One might say it’s more, well… “a-peeling.” Once called <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5RkB7_qNh8">“The Greatest Show in Sports” by ESPN,</a> the Savannah Bananas is easily the most fun you’ll ever have watching America’s favorite pastime. Banana Ball follows its own zany rules, injecting dancing players, acrobatics, and trick plays that challenge the status quo – often bringing fans and spectators into the experience.What made this quirky sport a viral sensation and a big-time brand success? Find out from <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/yellowtuxjesse/">Jesse Cole,</a> the owner of Savannah Bananas, at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Sitecore Symposium 2025</a>, November 3–5 at the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort in Orlando, Florida. In his exclusive keynote, you’ll get the whole “brand banana” and then some. This year’s Symposium also promises a backdrop for upleveling your marketing using AI, data, and content to build experiences that are bona fide home runs.   Before you go bananas over this news, Sitecore has a few more things planned for this year’s Symposium. By the way, early bird ticket pricing ends this week (September 12), so register now at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="http://symposium.sitecore.com/">symposium.sitecore.com </a> <h3 id="loading-the-bases-with-brand-power">Loading the bases with brand power</h3>For Jesse, Banana Ball is the realization of his dream to make baseball livelier and more fun. The Savannah Bananas are often on the road, playing in front of sold-out stadiums to raucous fans who come for the sport, but stay for the batters on stilts and the shortstop’s cartwheels. Or even the musical interludes from the All-American Rejects.As Jesse said during <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hluf-1XUb2k">an interview</a> on a recent edition of 60 Minutes, it started as baseball. “But now,” he said wryly, “let’s just turn it up a little bit.” Jesse’s story is a remarkable one. When his dream of playing professional baseball was sidetracked by injury, he steered into coaching. Along the way, he realized just how bored he was sitting in the dugout – and that’s where the showman bug bit him. He started incorporating choreographed dances and baseline hijinks into the games. He even donned a whacky yellow hat as an homage to PT Barnum. As the famous circus proprietor once said, “Without promotion, something terrible happens: Nothing!” Jesse embodies that belief – and proudly wears his brand out loud every day.“If your owner is dressed up in a yellow tuxedo,” he said, “I think that gives permission to everyone else to not take themselves too seriously. To have fun.”This is a big part of what makes Banana Ball different. It’s not just the dancing umpires or golden capes. It’s the philosophy that drives it all. You'll get a better sense of it from that 60 Minutes package: <figure class="media"><div data-oembed-url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hluf-1XUb2k"><div style="position:relative;padding-bottom:100%;height:0;padding-bottom:56.2493%"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Hluf-1XUb2k" style="position:absolute;width:100%;height:100%;top:0;left:0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe></div></div></figure> As you can see, Jesse screams authenticity. It’s a rare quality these days, but he’s the real deal – and cares deeply about the fans and community he’s cultivated. Despite the slim odds of actually nailing tickets for a game (there are thousands on the waitlist), the Savannah Bananas are committed to making their family-friendly fun affordable and accessible. And Jesse, a visible brand himself on social media, is always looking for ways to make fans feel like they’re the number one priority.Banana Ball has become a viral sensation, and attendees of this year’s Symposium 2025 will get a taste of it as Jesse Cole delivers the main stage keynote. His disruptive thinking has turned spectators into participants – and in many ways, that reflects Sitecore’s focus on helping brands move beyond transactions to create moments that matter. At Sitecore Symposium 2025, attendees will explore how to apply this ethos to their marketing strategy using AI, data, and content. Like the Savannah Bananas, the right combination of tools and thinking can help build experiences that feel personal, participatory, and even unforgettable. According to <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/sitecore-taps-veteran-eric-stine-as-ceo-to-lead-next-phase-of-growth-and-innovation">Sitecore CEO Eric Stine,</a> Jesse has transformed the fan experience by proving that joy and connection can create lasting loyalty. “That same principle applies to every brand represented at Symposium,” he said. “With the scale and speed of AI-driven personalization, companies have the power to translate complex products, large end-markets, or immense amounts of content into meaningful experiences that are both personal and enduring.”<h3 id="explore-the-future-of-ai,-data,-and-content-in-paradise">Explore the future of AI, data, and content in paradise</h3>Symposium 2025 is the second event that Sitecore has held in Orlando this year, starting with its <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/roi-explosion-sitecore-xm-cloud-delivers-371-return-on-investment-as-it-powers-the-agentic-future">Sales Kick Off back in July.</a> Orlando is a true “experience economy,” one of many reasons why it’s an ideal backdrop for an event that will attract 1,500 marketers, technologists, and digital leaders from around the globe.It’s also in Florida during the thick of autumn – exactly when the word “paradise” gets tossed into the descriptions. The air will be warm, the palm trees swaying, and the amenities are bountiful at the luxurious Dolphin Hotel. It’s also a stone’s throw away from Disney’s Boardwalk and a short hike to the Epcot theme park. While Jesse Cole is a big draw, Sitecore will also showcase its latest innovations at the event, including its <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.sitecore.com/partners/marketplace">newly launched App Marketplace,</a> which provides marketers, developers, and agency partners the freedom to build and deploy custom apps on demand using Sitecore’s SDK. When coupled with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/getting-loud-with-xm-cloud-sitecore-reports-100-growth-of-its-ai-powered-cloud-based-cms">XM Cloud,</a> Sitecore’s AI-ready, SaaS-native CMS, the App Marketplace provides dynamic solutions for brands to scale personalization with speed, flexibility, and precision – turning digital spectators into active participants. And XM Cloud continues to establish itself as a game-changer for organizations, delivering a <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/roi-explosion-sitecore-xm-cloud-delivers-371-return-on-investment-as-it-powers-the-agentic-future">371% return on investment.</a> At Symposium, attendees will be treated to real-world stories from customers like the American Heart Association, DP World, GoTo Technologies, and WellSpan Health, illustrating how Sitecore is helping organizations transform their digital strategies – not just with tools, but with a mindset shift toward experience-led growth. “Partnering with Sitecore allowed us to move fast and deliver results,” said <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/pemahoney/">Peter Mahoney,</a> Chief Commercial Officer at GoTo Technologies. “In a matter of weeks, we consolidated fragmented digital experiences, launched scalable personalization, and introduced innovations like a simplified product selector. As a result, we saw a 78% surge in organic trial conversions, a 200% improvement in lead quality and a projected 60–70% reduction in infrastructure costs. This wasn’t just a redesign – it was a transformation of how we engage, convert, and grow.”<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/masha-rubashkina-70b9361b/">Masha Rubashkina</a>, Managing Director, Global Head of Marketing and Branding at Kroll, also underscored the transformative impacts of XM Cloud on its Kroll.com website. As she said, it was more than just a platform upgrade – it set a new standard for digital excellence. “We have transformed how we present and deliver the firm to our clients, bringing clarity to our capabilities and strengthening our brand through a unified, global digital experience,” she said. “This new platform enables both our teams and our clients to move with greater speed, precision, and relevance – supporting marketing-led growth and reinforcing our position as a trusted advisor worldwide.”<h3 id="see-you-at-sitecore-symposium-2025">See you at Sitecore Symposium 2025</h3>Or Bananaland. Bottom line: we'll be having fun as we explore the future of digital experiences.Symposium is easily one of my favorite events of the year. It’s a chance to learn, connect, and be inspired by the people and projects being built on Sitecore. I'm also eager to hear about the real-world challenges affecting the content management and digital experience industry inside one of the leading ecosystems.Just like last year, I’ll be on the ground at Symposium 2025, connecting with partners, customers, and builders like you from across the Sitecore community. If you <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/sitecore-rocks-and-rolls-in-music-city-the-top-5-tracks-from-symposium-2024">read my analysis</a> from 2024 in Nashville, XM Cloud was already on a roll – and since then, it has continued to be a home run product for Sitecore. We’ll be tracking more of your stories as you share project outcomes and discuss the impacts of AI with Sitecore Stream and other advancements. If you want to join me, early bird pricing ends September 12, so register today at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">symposium.sitecore.com</a> <hr /><h4 style="text-align:center" id="looking-for-guidance-on-sitecore?-talk-to-an-expert.">Looking for guidance on Sitecore? <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/contact">Talk to an expert.</a></h4><hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:31.61%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/storyblok-joyconf-2025-logo.jpg" /><h4 id="storyblok-joyconf-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Storyblok JoyConf 2025</a></h4>October 14-15, 2025 – Amsterdam, Netherlands November 4, 2025 – New York, NY November 6, 2025 – Los Angeles, CAJoin us at JoyConf 2025, where the future of content meets the people shaping it. Built for developers, marketers, and digital innovators, this free conference goes way beyond product updates or yet another strategy playbook. It’s where you’ll get inspired, get real, and get connected – to ideas, to the community, and to what’s possible when you build joyfully. Whether you're building lightning-fast frontends or launching cross-channel campaigns, this is where content becomes connection and collaboration becomes second nature. Come for the talks. Stay for the community. Leave with joy. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Save your spot.</a> <img style="width:28.9%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/sitecore-symposium-2025.jpg" /><h4 id="sitecore-symposium-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Sitecore Symposium 2025</a></h4>November 3-5, 2025 – Orlando, FLAt Sitecore Symposium, you’ll learn how to meet your customers where they are – across channels, moments, and touchpoints that didn’t exist a year ago. You’ll hear how the boldest brands in the world are transforming content into outcomes and creating experiences that are fast, relevant, and human. Join 1,500 marketers, digital leaders, and technologists in Orlando to see what’s possible when personalization scales, AI accelerates creativity, and trust becomes your competitive edge. This is the Third Wave of the Internet. And this is your moment to lead in it. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Get your tickets today.</a> <img style="width:31.44%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/cms-kickoff-2026-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-kickoff-2026"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">CMS Kickoff 2026</a></h4>January 13-14, 2026 – St. Petersburg, FLMeet industry leaders at our fourth annual CMS Kickoff – the industry's premier global CMS event. Similar to a traditional kickoff, we reflect on recent trends and share stories from the frontlines. Additionally, we will delve into the current happenings and shed light on the future. Prepare for an unparalleled in-person CMS conference experience that will equip you to move things forward. This is an exclusive event – space is limited, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">so secure your tickets today.</a>

Batter Up! Sitecore Symposium 2025 Brings Jesse Cole of Savannah Bananas to the Plate 

matt-garrepy

Is content management dead? Contentstack’s Agent OS reimagines new life in the ‘Context Economy'

<hr /> 14 years. It’s a long time by any measure, but vastly more for humans living in a war-torn country under an oppressive dictator. Such were the struggles of the Syrian people under the brutal Assad regime, a tyranny that dates back over half a century. It was all horrific, but the last decade and a half were among the worst years as the country became an unforgiving battlefield.For <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/nabeez/">Nabil Orfali</a>, those struggles hold a deeply personal meaning, like a wound in his heart. Syria is his homeland, the place where his journey as a technologist – and a digital dreamer – began.After graduating from Damascus University with a degree in computer science, Nabil spent the first three years of his career working in Syria. The dotcom boom was blossoming, and it was a time of great change as the internet connected the world. It was an exciting moment, and Nabil was at the center of it.“I helped bring web development to the whole country at that time,” he said, reflecting how Syrian businesses and agencies were investing in a new horizon of possibilities. In addition to other novel projects, Nabil built the first online payment system for the country’s first ISP, pioneering digital transactions and nurturing an entirely new industry flush with transformational opportunities. In 2001, Nabil left Syria, watching the chaos spread as then-president Bashar al-Assad grew more bellicose – monopolizing resources, violating human rights, and committing atrocities against his own people. This, among other illegal actions, led to crushing international sanctions that quelled any prospects of growth.In the years that followed, the people of Syria rose up in revolution, fighting a civil war to oust the divisive leader. As Nabil shared, the ensuing battle was replete with tragedy. Thousands died or were imprisoned. Families were broken and displaced. Millions sought safety across borders. It was nothing short of a humanitarian crisis. “Over the last 14 years, the Syrian people have been asking for freedom,” Nabil said. And while he was removed from the warfare and living in Canada, he did what he could to muster assistance from abroad. “My Syrian friends here and in the US were actively trying to help refugees with aid and supporting projects to help during that hard period.”One of the early projects that Nabil spearheaded was the creation of a workshop in Turkey, explicitly designed for Syrian women. The neighboring country had become a host for refugees, and this charitable vestibule provided a lifeline of self-sufficiency that taught practical crafts like crocheting, woodworking, and other trades. Equipped with these skills, Syrian women were able to build toys and produce children’s clothing to enrich their communities during the bitter winters. Local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) also purchased the wares, providing opportunities for families to earn a living. The workshop ended up employing around 190 families and became a shining beacon of hope. <hr /><h4 style="text-align:center" id="-"> </h4><h4 style="text-align:center" id="“i’ve-been-in-technology-for-my-whole-career,-and-my-friends-as-well.-so-we-got-together,-around-ten-or-eleven-of-us,-from-across-the-globe.-places-like-the-uk,-germany,-the-us,-and-canada.-we-wanted-to-help-in-a-bigger-way.”">“I’ve been in technology for my whole career, and my friends as well. So we got together, around ten or eleven of us, from across the globe. Places like the UK, Germany, the US, and Canada. We wanted to help in a bigger way.”</h4> <hr /> In 2024, Syrian rebels launched a lightning offensive across the country, recapturing occupied cities like Aleppo – where some of the most violent fighting had happened. In the wake of liberation, the door opened to hope and jubilation. Some of the sanctions were lifted, and a fledgling new government went to work rebuilding the country.Many communities were in ruins after 14 years of conflict. As you can imagine, rebuilding will be a decades-long venture, with a core focus on repairing essential infrastructure like access to stable power and clean water. But the technology and communications infrastructure also require serious mending – and that’s where Nabil and his colleagues have been chiefly focused. “I’ve been in technology for my whole career, and my friends as well,” he said. “So we got together, around ten or eleven of us, from across the globe. Places like the UK, Germany, the US, and Canada. We wanted to help in a bigger way.”That led to the creation of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://14.digital/about-us/">14.Digital, </a>an NGO dedicated to revitalizing Syria's digital infrastructure through innovative and agile solutions. The members are uniquely skilled and qualified technology practitioners who are committed to rebuilding a nation that has endured decades of turmoil. The organization’s name is both an optimistic prompt and a stark tribute to Syria’s 14 years of revolution. It’s also a reminder of its deep sacrifices in the long journey to freedom – and, perhaps, the struggle that lies ahead.<h3 id="pairing-advanced-technology-with-global-values">Pairing advanced technology with global values</h3>I didn’t know the full extent of Nabil’s origin story. We see each other regularly at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">Boye &amp; Company CMS Experts events,</a> where he’s a constant beam of knowledge for our community. He has a deeply proven pedigree as a content management and DXP practitioner, with multiple Sitecore MVPs under his belt. What I did know about him was his successful track record as a builder and his penchant for restless creation. His company, Toronto-based <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.techguilds.com/">TechGuilds,</a> has been his sandbox for innovation, evolving to deliver quality solutions that encompass CRM, commerce, and other facets of digital experience. He's also the father of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/kajoo">Kajoo</a>, an AI-powered DX builder that accelerates front-end development for composable platforms, including <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/sitecore">Sitecore’s XM Cloud,</a> <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/optimizely">Optimizely,</a> and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/kontentai">Kontent.ai.</a> Like its name, Kajoo conjures a sense of wonder and whimsy, and watching it ingest a <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/figma">Figma</a> prototype and convert it to clean, efficient code is nothing short of inspiring.Given Nabil’s flair for innovation – coupled with his innate drive and determination – it’s not surprising that he’s confronted the Syrian crisis with a bold sense of compassion. 14.Digital crystallizes that heart-led mission, and it’s already making an impact with projects on multiple fronts. There’s a big vision guiding everything, but as Nabil said, the post-war conditions are still being felt in the lack of general stability. As such, they have their work cut out for them.“The goal is to advance the digital maturity of the whole country,” he said. “They have very, very rudimentary resources. There are frequent electrical outages, with power coming only a few times a day. It’s improving, and people are getting creative with solar panels and batteries.”That resourcefulness is a credit to the Syrian people, who have lived under austerity for decades. This is why a key part of 14.Digital’s charter is to reinforce human rights and democratic values as it implements national and community-based projects. The organization is acting responsibly and transparently in its practices, and committing to generosity, collaboration, and respect across its operations. 14.Digital also champions equality, equity, and freedom of expression, striving for the open exchange of ideas and opinions. This is a stark contrast to decades of oppression. It's also a covenant of hope as Syrians look to build a resilient and thriving nation.  <h3 id="pioneering-a-sustainable-digital-infrastructure-to-power-the-future">Pioneering a sustainable digital infrastructure to power the future</h3>To enable local residents and communities to achieve greater independence, 14.Digital is working to address the challenges stemming from limited or underdeveloped infrastructure and, where possible, enhancing the technological footprint. Registered in both Syria and Canada, the organization’s team is comprised of skilled professionals from diverse backgrounds who are keenly focused on digital infrastructure development and community support.In terms of discrete services, 14.Digital provides a range of software design and development resources for creating and deploying custom solutions. This includes the architecting of secure, scalable digital and cloud infrastructure solutions to meet a variety of business goals. The team also provides physical and cybersecurity measures, network design, and even artificial intelligence services to deliver enhanced automation and efficiency. Training is another component of 14.Digital's mission. The civil war created a significant knowledge gap for Syria’s youth, with academic facilities shuttered and students left in limbo. Creating opportunities for Syrian-based technology and workers is a key area of focus, and one of the projects Nabil described was a partnership with Syrian university faculty to mentor students in computer science and conduct workshops on modern topics. “We're training in different digital areas, from web development to AI,” he explained. And it hasn’t stopped there. Nabil said that 14.Digital is also assisting with a host of cybersecurity initiatives, providing audits to government agency websites. After the fall of the previous regime, there's been a precipitous rise in hacking, leading to deeper audits and remediations. This has all proven difficult given that the country is working without solid data centers as part of its digital infrastructure.There’s also been a big push surrounding modernization across public agencies. One of the biggest projects Nabil and 14.Digital have proposed is to implement a secure core solution to power e-government services. “Civil records were largely paper-based, and a lot of them were damaged during the war,” he said. “If you don't have those records, you can’t provide healthcare properly, or conduct elections, or even confirm the identity of the citizen. So from that perspective, we proposed a project to provide digital identity to all government agencies for issuing IDs, driver's licenses, even passports down the road. But we’re going to build that core of digital identity in a very secure way.”Nabil said the project went through a period of deep study and research, which ultimately provided the budget to build multiple data centers with high redundancy in two different locations. It will be a massive undertaking, and likely take two or three years to complete, but they’ve already received millions in funding from outside donors. Nabil is optimistic that an approval will happen in the coming months, and they can break ground in the near term.<h3 id="healing-the-scars-with-hope">Healing the scars with hope</h3>In many ways, Syria is a diamond waiting to be polished. It has seen unspeakable horrors over the last 14 years, but its people have persevered. Now, they’re eager to restore its beauty – so it can shine brilliantly once more.Despite the regime's fall, the future of Syria remains uncertain. There are still fears of new conflicts between various non-state-affiliated groups, including ideologically driven factions. Millions are still in need of basic humanitarian assistance, and many remain outside the country as victims of displacement. But the enthusiasm for the future is palpable. And while there are many critical issues to solve, improving processes with digital technology could significantly accelerate the overall recovery. As Nabil shared, one of the biggest tragedies has been the loss of a generation of talent, and having access to stable power and internet services could enable students to gain ground through remote learning and improve their future prospects.“The thing they need most right now, in my opinion, is almost a rehabilitation of skill sets,” he explained. “Not just hard skills or technical skills, but also soft skills like language. A lot of these kids, they've been out of school for five years, ten years in some cases. It’s so sad. NGOs have created schools and there’s some tutoring available, but I would love to see us coming in from the digital and technology perspective to up level their skills to make their lives better. And in turn, they can make their country better.”As someone who has personally volunteered time, money, and technology resources to support the Special Olympics and other NPOs, I am moved and motivated by Nabil’s efforts. While many of us endeavor to give back in our own way, he is facing down a mammoth crisis. Most of us can’t even imagine what his country has been through or the trauma the war has left behind.In light of this, he remains incurably optimistic. This is a testament to his belief in technology's ability to make an impact, and illustrates the propensity for digital not to divide us – but connect us. “With all the difficulties that the Syrian people are still facing, you can see this amazing energy,” he said glowingly. “People are going to the streets, cleaning and repairing things, making the country look better. Doing anything they can within their means to help. All of a sudden, they feel that the country belongs to them. So you see all these little projects with groups of people just taking action. When I see that, I feel like I have a duty to help make their lives easier.”Wounds heal, but scars remain. They remind us of what's been lost. But they also tell a story about survival – and perhaps, with the help of others, they can symbolize a moment when everything changed. For the better. Bravo, 14.Digital. I hope the next 14 years will bring the peace and prosperity Syrians deserve. <hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:31.61%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/storyblok-joyconf-2025-logo.jpg" /><h4 id="storyblok-joyconf-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Storyblok JoyConf 2025</a></h4>October 14-15, 2025 – Amsterdam, Netherlands November 4, 2025 – New York, NY November 6, 2025 – Los Angeles, CAJoin us at JoyConf 2025, where the future of content meets the people shaping it. Built for developers, marketers, and digital innovators, this free conference goes way beyond product updates or yet another strategy playbook. It’s where you’ll get inspired, get real, and get connected – to ideas, to the community, and to what’s possible when you build joyfully. Whether you're building lightning-fast frontends or launching cross-channel campaigns, this is where content becomes connection and collaboration becomes second nature. Come for the talks. Stay for the community. Leave with joy. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Save your spot.</a> <img style="width:28.9%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/sitecore-symposium-2025.jpg" /><h4 id="sitecore-symposium-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Sitecore Symposium 2025</a></h4>November 3-5, 2025 – Orlando, FLAt Sitecore Symposium, you’ll learn how to meet your customers where they are – across channels, moments, and touchpoints that didn’t exist a year ago. You’ll hear how the boldest brands in the world are transforming content into outcomes and creating experiences that are fast, relevant, and human. Join 1,500 marketers, digital leaders, and technologists in Orlando to see what’s possible when personalization scales, AI accelerates creativity, and trust becomes your competitive edge. This is the Third Wave of the Internet. And this is your moment to lead in it. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Get your tickets today.</a> <img style="width:31.44%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/cms-kickoff-2026-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-kickoff-2026"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">CMS Kickoff 2026</a></h4>January 13-14, 2026 – St. Petersburg, FLMeet industry leaders at our fourth annual CMS Kickoff – the industry's premier global CMS event. Similar to a traditional kickoff, we reflect on recent trends and share stories from the frontlines. Additionally, we will delve into the current happenings and shed light on the future. Prepare for an unparalleled in-person CMS conference experience that will equip you to move things forward. This is an exclusive event – space is limited, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">so secure your tickets today.</a>

In the Scars of Syria, 14.Digital is Revitalizing Digital Infrastructure and Healing the Future

Big Bang ROI: Sitecore XM Cloud Delivers 371% Return on Investment as it Powers the Agentic Future

<hr /> Agencies and CMS platforms have long forged go-to-market partnerships to power channel opportunities. Recently, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/strapi">Strapi</a>, an open source headless CMS, formalized its collaboration with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://9ea41cec.streaklinks.com/CjocxQwZmb4zhUxDAgRF8o7i/https%3A%2F%2Falloycrew.com%2F">Alloy</a> – a premier agency specializing in precision storytelling and experiences for imaginative tech brands.According to Alloy's press release, its partnership with the headless content management system will give brands the power to create modern websites with a tech-stack-agnostic solution. The open source nature of the platform, in stark contrast to many closed headless CMS platforms – along with both its managed and self-hosted options – were key factors driving Alloy's excitement around the partnership. “We’re thrilled to welcome Alloy into the Strapi Partner Program,” said <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://9ea41cec.streaklinks.com/CjocxQwKSuOqgvDqfAOmQkmZ/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fmarkaraymond%2F">Mark Raymond</a>, Strategic Partnerships Manager at Strapi. “Their proven expertise, professionalism, and presence in the U.S. market make them an ideal partner as we expand our footprint in North America. Together, we’ll empower brands to create data-rich, scalable digital experiences built on the flexibility of Strapi’s open-source CMS.”<h3 id="building-demand-in-a-competitive-headless-cms-market">Building demand in a competitive headless CMS market</h3>Founded in 2015, Strapi gives developers the freedom to use their favorite tools and frameworks while allowing editors to easily manage their content and distribute it anywhere. Companies of all sizes have built their websites and apps with Strapi, including Apple, Adidas, Walmart, JP Morgan Chase &amp; Co., and Carvana, among thousands of others. As of this year, the platform had reeled in over 66,000 GitHub stars, amassed thousands of contributors, and topped over 50 million downloads – making it the most popular open source headless CMS on the market. They’ve also secured $45 million in funding along the way.Strapi combines a dynamic content editing experience with a solid underlying system for managing structured data. This makes it a solid choice for both marketing teams who need to easily manage content and developers who need a robust system that can handle different types of relational data. We've previously spoken with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/pierre-burgy-strapi-88671673/">co-founder and CEO Pierre Burgy</a> about Strapi's roadmap and how the platform is bringing together the best of all worlds for marketers and developers. At the same time, the company was founded by coders, and has cultivated a strong relationship and preference around its technical heritage.Strapi continues to build momentum around its ecosystem, including its <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://strapi.io/cloud">Strapi Cloud</a> and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://market.strapi.io/">Strapi Market,</a> which expand its breadth of offerings. The company is also touting its API creation, content modeling, and delivery capabilities. It also offers an <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://strapi.io/partners">extensive list </a>of enterprise, business, and community partners in its ecosystem, specializing in everything from application development to AI.<h3 id="about-alloy">About Alloy</h3>Alloy is an integrated marketing agency that specializes in designing and building websites and products that merge elegance with cutting-edge technology. They work with customers in the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East, and the firm’s deep expertise in creating marketing strategies, platforms, ecosystems, multichannel campaigns and much more help imaginative brands engage with buyers, shape public opinion, build lasting influence and grow market share. "Strapi's open-source platform is a game-changer for our clients who want to own their technology stack," said <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://9ea41cec.streaklinks.com/CjocxQwsLK6WvlajYwr5GXhB/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Frogerfpeters%2F">Roger Peters</a>, VP of Technology at Alloy. “This partnership is all about giving clients the freedom to build and scale with a flexible, API-first CMS that integrates seamlessly and reduces the risk of vendor lock-in. We're excited to architect dynamic solutions for our clients that future-proof their brand for whatever comes next.”Since 2012, Alloy has been named a 10-time Best Place to Work, Technology Agency of the Year, and Fastest Growing Agency, and has been celebrated for Best Use of Measurement and Data. <hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:31.61%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/storyblok-joyconf-2025-logo.jpg" /><h4 id="storyblok-joyconf-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Storyblok JoyConf 2025</a></h4>October 14-15, 2025 – Amsterdam, Netherlands November 4, 2025 – New York, NY November 6, 2025 – Los Angeles, CAJoin us at JoyConf 2025, where the future of content meets the people shaping it. Built for developers, marketers, and digital innovators, this free conference goes way beyond product updates or yet another strategy playbook. It’s where you’ll get inspired, get real, and get connected – to ideas, to the community, and to what’s possible when you build joyfully. Whether you're building lightning-fast frontends or launching cross-channel campaigns, this is where content becomes connection and collaboration becomes second nature. Come for the talks. Stay for the community. Leave with joy. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Save your spot.</a> <img style="width:28.9%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/sitecore-symposium-2025.jpg" /><h4 id="sitecore-symposium-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Sitecore Symposium 2025</a></h4>November 3-5, 2025 – Orlando, FLAt Sitecore Symposium, you’ll learn how to meet your customers where they are – across channels, moments, and touchpoints that didn’t exist a year ago. You’ll hear how the boldest brands in the world are transforming content into outcomes and creating experiences that are fast, relevant, and human. Join 1,500 marketers, digital leaders, and technologists in Orlando to see what’s possible when personalization scales, AI accelerates creativity, and trust becomes your competitive edge. This is the Third Wave of the Internet. And this is your moment to lead in it. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Get your tickets today.</a> <img style="width:31.44%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/cms-kickoff-2026-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-kickoff-2026"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">CMS Kickoff 2026</a></h4>January 13-14, 2026 – St. Petersburg, FLMeet industry leaders at our fourth annual CMS Kickoff – the industry's premier global CMS event. Similar to a traditional kickoff, we reflect on recent trends and share stories from the frontlines. Additionally, we will delve into the current happenings and shed light on the future. Prepare for an unparalleled in-person CMS conference experience that will equip you to move things forward. This is an exclusive event – space is limited, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">so secure your tickets today.</a>

Strapi Launches Strategic Partnership with Alloy to Deliver Scalable, Data-Powered Digital Experiences

cms-critic-staff

Power your CMS on AWS

Manage your websites & apps in the most trusted cloud.

#ffffff

Put on a happy CMS face: Storyblok's facial coding experiment reveals how AI is sparking joy 

<hr /> I’ve been following <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/amplitude">Amplitude</a> for several years, specifically throughout this promising (if not tumultuous) period of AI disruption. The company has continuously pedaled the innovation wheels, exploring new ways to improve insights for marketers and brands as the digital world furiously changes around us. For example, we covered the introduction of its <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/replay-it-again-sam-amplitudes-session-replay-everywhere-rocks-with-analytics-visualizations">Session Replay Everywhere</a> earlier this year, which expands on the company’s initial launch <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/amplitude-expands-platform-capabilities-with-session-replay-and-simplified-pricing">in 2023</a>. This new approach incorporates the replay feature into every workflow to capture broader user engagement, minus the labor-intensive setup and rigid event taxonomies.Bridging this gap between qualitative and quantitative understanding is a powerful salve to what I call The Analytics Blues. It enables marketers to diagnose product issues, improve conversions, identify UX behaviors, innovate faster, and generally build better digital experiences.Experimentation is critical for marketers, and time is always the enemy. They simply can’t afford to wait weeks (or longer) to test an idea. Experimentation is the lifeblood of optimization, and when you run fewer tests, you get fewer learnings – and, ultimately, fewer conversions.In most cases, the holdup rests with the tooling. Many legacy experimentation platforms struggle with visual editors that break when used on modern sites, and marketers can’t address the fixes themselves. That means filing a ticket, waiting for engineering, and praying that the page doesn’t break once their changes go live. All these delays can impact a campaign’s effectiveness. And even when a test is finally running properly, the resulting metrics aren’t always useful.Tests need to work. And they need to be simple. Last year, Amplitude endeavored to solve these problems with its novel <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://amplitude.com/web-experimentation">Web Experimentation</a> solution, and the company says that marketing and growth teams using the service have realized strong gains in testing velocity and conversion optimization. I’ve seen it in action, and there’s real value for marketers.That said, Amplitude has been listening to its customers and evolving the platform’s capabilities. This week, they announced a major update of Web Experimentation, including four new features designed to help marketers and growth teams do more. These features – drag-and-drop visual editing, control variant editing, group cohort targeting, and out-of-the-box widgets – show great promise. And according to Amplitude, users could test three times faster and build with greater autonomy via these enhancements.As part of this announcement, Amplitude is also teasing the launch of its own <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://amplitude.com/ai">AI Agents,</a> which will give marketers and web PMs some slick capabilities like auto-generating experiment ideas based on conversion trends or drop-off points, or draft variant copy and layouts based on behavioral data.  <figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:30.19%"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/image-1756482273106.png" alt="A person smiling at the camera

AI-generated content may be incorrect." /></figure>Nithya Rajendran, Principal Product Manager, Amplitude I connected with Amplitude’s <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/nithya-r-2a72794/">Nithya Rajendran,</a> a project manager working on the Web Experimentation and AI initiatives, about the frontier of Amplitude’s agentic investment. She provided some insight on what kinds of functionality we can expect and the benefits. “Our Agents work in parallel with teams to tackle essential but tedious activities like monitoring data, spotting patterns and changes, watching user sessions, forming hypotheses, running experiments, shipping changes, and monitoring impact,” Rajendran said. “Our AI Agents are built directly into the platform to help automate these tasks, meaning work that used to take weeks can now take minutes."<h3 id="giving-marketers-more-control-for-expanded-use-cases-">Giving marketers more control for expanded use cases </h3>Marketers are dealing with a lot these days. With dozens of tools to balance in their expanding toolkit – not to mention the diminishing realities of search traffic and the advent of GEO – they need enhanced observability and better analytics to manage the chaos. And when it comes to testing, they need to reduce the friction to make the juice worth the squeeze.Amplitude Web Experimentation has always been geared towards helping marketers run faster, easier, and more impactful tests, so they can optimize and improve their outcomes. With this major update and new features, it promises to deliver marketing and growth teams with more power for building and running experiments in a truly self-service motion – giving them the control they need to be successful. As the company stated in its press release, there are four new features in Web Experimentation. The first is the ability to rearrange elements with true drag-and-drop editing, where you can shift a headline from below a form to above it in seconds. We take these things for granted in CMS and DXP ecosystems, but having an easy-to-use visual editor at the testing level has been elusive. Now, with Web Experimentation, you can move page components around visually instead of relying on an engineering team to do the heavy lifting. With its new out-of-the-box widgets, Web Experimentation now supports more test types. This means simplifying the time and complexity involved with adding banners, CTAs, or pop-ups without custom code.With freshly added group cohorting capabilities, you can target by account, allowing B2B teams to personalize experiments for specific companies or account lists. You can also edit control variants directly, allowing you to update your “default” experience without waiting for developers to push changes.<h3 id="a-seamless-add-on-for-cms-and-dxp-platforms">A seamless add-on for CMS and DXP platforms</h3>Web Experimentation’s new features are designed to give marketing and web PMs a much faster and streamlined pathway to testing. It’s also CMS agnostic, making it much more extensible and easier for organizations to onboard. “It works anywhere you can add a simple script tag, whether that is a traditional CMS or a headless CMS,” Rajendran said. “Once the script is installed, marketers can use a no-code, drag-and-drop Visual Editor to launch experiments directly on their site without developer support.”Amplitude also offers official plugins for <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://c67dcd9a.streaklinks.com/CjlzcGqbWy6jkUcbTQdlL3tq/https%3A%2F%2Famplitude.com%2Fdocs%2Fdata%2Famplitude-wordpress-plugin">WordPress</a><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://c67dcd9a.streaklinks.com/CjlzcGuKCuDX0DOR4QDezJ9N/https%3A%2F%2Famplitude.com%2Fdocs%2Fdata%2Famplitude-shopify-plugin"> and Shopify</a> that make it easy to install Web Experimentation – along with other solutions like Analytics and Session Replay – with minimal setup.Amplitude has also cozied up with the customer data layers across stacks, all the way down to the warehouse layer, where it offers self-service analytics capabilities. As Nithya explained, this connection to CDPs also enhances the overall flow. “Because Amplitude also integrates with CDPs like <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/twilio-acquires-segment-for-3-2b-adds-market-leading-cdp-for-building-data-driven-apps">Segment</a> and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://tealium.com/">Tealium</a>, experiments are tied to consistent customer data that already flows through the rest of the stack,” she said.From a feedback perspective, Amplitude is touting its success with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://crometrics.com/">Cro Metrics</a>, where its drag-and-drop editor is having a notable impact. According to Co-CEO <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/gwen-hammes/">Gwen Hammes</a>, it’s giving Cro Metrics a new level of agility for its clients, allowing them to spin up high-impact experiments like banners and modals within their marketing and product teams – so they can move from concept to customer faster than ever.“That’s the sweet spot,” Hammes said. “Empowering our clients to iterate quickly to see measurable lift, while freeing up their valuable time for us to collaborate on larger strategic initiatives and integrate test learnings cross-functionally for even greater impact.”<h3 id="amplitude-ai-agents-are-entering-the-stack-">Amplitude AI Agents are entering the stack </h3>As I mentioned, this update also framed Amplitude’s foray onto the agentic AI scene, where we’re likely to see a great deal of automation surrounding various use cases. Analytics is one area where AI is already demonstrating its immense value to glean meaningful insights from large data sets and provide more actionable intelligence. I suspect we’ll see that value translated here. I’ve been watching a lot of demos from vendors in different categories, and the use cases for agentic AI and the harnessing of MCP are yielding some spectacular results. According to Amplitude, we’ll see their applications come to life this fall, with the foundation being laid through these Web Experimentation updates. When put to work, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://amplitude.com/blog/ai-agents?siteLocation=ai-agents-spotlight-cards">Amplitude’s AI Agents </a>will take testing velocity to new levels, simplifying tasks and reducing workloads that used to take weeks into hours. While it’s still early days, Amplitude said its agents will have a huge impact on a myriad of functions, like autonomously prioritizing tests that are most likely to drive lift or interpreting results and automatically recommending actions. AI agents can also assist with some of the more “nefarious” challenges that exist in a flow, like creating better checkout experiences to reduce abandoned carts or improving products by driving users toward their preferred behaviors (think signups or upsells). <figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:85.66%"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/image-1756482272869.png" alt="A screenshot of a computer

AI-generated content may be incorrect." /></figure>Source: Amplitude website Here’s where the connection to Web Experimentation comes in: Because these AI agents are built into the broader Amplitude platform, AI Agents won’t just analyze experiments in isolation – they’ll learn from the same analytics, session replays, and surveys you do, and act on them instantly. And the new drag-and-drop editor, widgets, and control features represent three critical channels that Amplitude's AI Agents will use on your behalf.Amplitude has also worked to make these agents as accessible as possible to marketing teams across all skill levels by harnessing a natural language interface. “While marketers will benefit from huge time-savings, they still stay in control,” Rajendran said. “They decide the level of autonomy their Agents have, and as they build trust, they can adjust these guardrails. So that means you can rely on an Agent to recommend content variants, but a marketer approves them before an experiment is rolled out. After the experiment runs, an Agent will analyze the results and recommend next steps, but a marketer makes the final call."<h3 id="pricing">Pricing</h3>Amplitude <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/amplitude-expands-platform-capabilities-with-session-replay-and-simplified-pricing">introduced simplified pricing</a> early last year as part of its Sesson Replay launch, and there’s some decent guidance on their website. I like the inclusion of a free tier as a “jumping off” point, and the Plus plan starts at $49/month for 300K MTUs.Those dreaded MTUs. This is where the challenges exist, and hence why Amplitude offers a Growth tier with custom volumes. But all of its plans feature Web Experimentation, and hence, a gateway for experiencing these new features at any level. You can explore the full breadth of the packages on their <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://amplitude.com/pricing">pricing page. </a>According to Rajendran, there aren’t any pricing details for the Amplitude AI Agents as of yet. In her words, the company is focused on enhancing the overall experience for customers and not monetizing the capabilities.<h3 id="the-verdict">The verdict</h3>Amplitude continues to establish its leadership through innovation, and these new features are aimed at giving marketers even greater control over their experimentation and testing, and that’s a win. Doing it faster – and with stable tools – is the name of the game, and Amplitude is delivering on that front with its easy drag-and-drop capabilities and out-of-the-box widgets.Based on preliminary positioning, the roadmap for Amplitude’s AI Agents looks exciting. Data and analytics are prime real estate for converting value around agentic investments, and the gains in automation could be significant. We’ll have to monitor feedback once we see them in play and assess how these capabilities measure up to other competitive AI enhancements across the stack. There are already AI agents farming analytics from platforms like <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://beam.ai/integrations/mixpanel">Mixpanel</a> to enhance operations efficiency and strategic growth. It’s worth a few demos and some homework on the AI roadmaps as you evaluate options, but Amplitude has a clear vision – and they’re executing for success.  <hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:31.61%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/storyblok-joyconf-2025-logo.jpg" /><h4 id="storyblok-joyconf-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Storyblok JoyConf 2025</a></h4>October 14-15, 2025 – Amsterdam, Netherlands November 4, 2025 – New York, NY November 6, 2025 – Los Angeles, CAJoin us at JoyConf 2025, where the future of content meets the people shaping it. Built for developers, marketers, and digital innovators, this free conference goes way beyond product updates or yet another strategy playbook. It’s where you’ll get inspired, get real, and get connected – to ideas, to the community, and to what’s possible when you build joyfully. Whether you're building lightning-fast frontends or launching cross-channel campaigns, this is where content becomes connection and collaboration becomes second nature. Come for the talks. Stay for the community. Leave with joy. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Save your spot.</a> <img style="width:28.9%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/sitecore-symposium-2025.jpg" /><h4 id="sitecore-symposium-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Sitecore Symposium 2025</a></h4>November 3-5, 2025 – Orlando, FLAt Sitecore Symposium, you’ll learn how to meet your customers where they are – across channels, moments, and touchpoints that didn’t exist a year ago. You’ll hear how the boldest brands in the world are transforming content into outcomes and creating experiences that are fast, relevant, and human. Join 1,500 marketers, digital leaders, and technologists in Orlando to see what’s possible when personalization scales, AI accelerates creativity, and trust becomes your competitive edge. This is the Third Wave of the Internet. And this is your moment to lead in it. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Get your tickets today.</a> <img style="width:31.44%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/cms-kickoff-2026-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-kickoff-2026"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">CMS Kickoff 2026</a></h4>January 13-14, 2026 – St. Petersburg, FLMeet industry leaders at our fourth annual CMS Kickoff – the industry's premier global CMS event. Similar to a traditional kickoff, we reflect on recent trends and share stories from the frontlines. Additionally, we will delve into the current happenings and shed light on the future. Prepare for an unparalleled in-person CMS conference experience that will equip you to move things forward. This is an exclusive event – space is limited, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">so secure your tickets today.</a>

Amplitude’s New Web Experimentation Upgrade Gives Marketers 3x Faster Testing and More Control

<hr /> At <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/the-deep-dish-on-composable-6-tasty-takeaways-from-the-mach-alliances-2025-conference">“The Composable Conference” </a>this past April, AI was undeniably the central focus for the MACH Alliance community and the market at large. Agentic commerce was just starting to boil, and brands were lining up to talk about their plans to harness agents to do their bidding.At the event, I spoke with the Alliance’s <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/the-future-is-composable-a-conversation-with-new-mach-alliance-president-casper-rasmussen">Casper Rasmussen</a> (who recently announced he is stepping down as president) about all the hubbub. In a quiet moment, he reflected on the tidal wave of innovation he was shepherding at <a href="linkedin.com/in/casper-aagaard-rasmussen/">Valtech</a>, where he serves as Group Chief Transformation Officer. That's a cool title, BTW. I’ve seen some of their AI-powered handiwork, courtesy of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-abraham-0b6212/">Allison Abraham</a> – the agency’s SVP of North American ops. During her demo of Valtech’s AI Concierge for Lexus Europe, there were some jaw-dropping moments. Yeah, this AI stuff – it’s amazing. And to Casper’s point, the use cases keep getting better. That’s not to say there aren’t problems with AI. Some big ones, even. While some organizations are unlocking real value from their investments, others are staring down the reality that it’s just not paying off. If we’re being honest, a lot of those failed attempts have been due to a tempest of irrational exuberance, which often leads to poor planning and reactionary missteps. This is where vision and leadership are key – especially as we usher in the third wave of AI and the agent revolution. As agentic AI reshapes the business landscape, the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/accenture-song-brings-its-composable-commerce-music-to-the-mach-alliance-heres-why-it-matters">MACH Alliance</a> has announced that its role is evolving to meet the swelling AI imperative. It will expand its charter to focus on the goal of unlocking trusted, agent-to-agent ecosystems that drive innovation and collaboration, while continuing to uphold the central tenets of MACH.So what does this repositioning really mean? Here’s a breakdown. <h3 id="aligning-with-an-ai-centric-technology-landscape">Aligning with an AI-centric technology landscape</h3>One of the biggest challenges with AI is guidance, and enterprises are on the prowl for it. I know, because I've spoken to many brands about their AI strategies, and there's no limit to their ambitions – or their anxieties. They need help.To that end, the MACH Alliance has already established its position as a trusted industry authority, and expanding its charter into the realm of AI is logical, particularly given the depth of adoption across its membership community. By enabling transformation through open, connected, and composable architectures, they have many of the essential ingredients to bridge vision with real-world implementation.<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/mach-alliance-aims-to-evolve-enterprise-ai-architecture-with-new-end-user-leadership-model">I recently wrote</a> about the Alliance’s intentional shift to an end-user leadership model, which seems to reflect a call for greater democratization from the top down. This will diversify the leadership structure and infuse real-world talent to help navigate the narrow harbors of successful AI execution. From a support perspective, this further reinforces the actionable tools the Alliance has been curating, specifically with the development of its <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/a-new-game-for-interoperability-heres-why-the-mach-alliances-open-data-model-is-a-winner">Open Data Model</a> and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/mach-alliance-launches-new-mach-ai-exchange-to-help-enterprises-streamline-ai-adoption">MACH AI Exchange. </a>According to the Alliance, this move is a “refreshing” of its central positioning to establish MACH as the foundation for AI-ready enterprise architecture. A central driver will be the realization of agent-to-agent ecosystems that are trusted, open, and scalable across vendor and enterprise boundaries. Another key objective will be the reinforcement of interoperability through new certifications and governance standards – think MCP, A2A, AI-Connected Certification, and the aforementioned Open Data Model. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/the-heros-journey-to-composable-a-conversation-with-uniforms-mark-demeny">Mark Demeny</a> gave a current walk-through of the ODM at the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/a-gathering-of-content-champions-heres-why-cms-connect-25-was-super-in-every-way">Boye &amp; Company CMS Connect 25</a> conference a few weeks ago, and it's looking very promising. I’ve previously spoken about the Alliance's need to invest in more actionable tools and training, and the docket for AI would include the publishing of practical tools, reference architectures, and business transformation guides. Further bolstering this position is a plan to launch what they call “proof-driven innovation,” which would follow the path of newer initiatives like the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://machalliance.org/mach-ai-exchange">MACH AI Exchange</a> and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://machalliance.org/futuremach">FutureMACH</a> programs. <h3 id="unlocking-the-value-of-agentic-ai-with-mach">Unlocking the value of agentic AI with MACH</h3>It’s clear that AI is reshaping and accelerating how enterprises operate, from decision-making to customer interaction. As the MACH Alliance maintains, interoperability – not isolated tools – will be the key to powering the next wave of agent-to-agent innovation. To that end, composable, MACH-driven strategies will be a key activator for success. That’s not hyperbole. There’s some real historical validation to back it up. According to data from the Alliance, enterprises that are well along in their MACH journey are <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://23221942.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/23221942/2025%20Annual%20Research%20Report/2025%20MACH%20Alliance_Global%20Annual%20Research%20Report_Final_compressed.pdf">twice as likely to successfully deploy AI</a>, with 77% achieving success compared to just 36% for those new to MACH.MACH can play a critical role across the expanding AI horizon. For example, AI and agents need to function across silos, so it’s essential to provide agility around data and systems – something MACH and composable architecture can deliver. Agentic solutions also require real-time trust, governance, and negotiation, which MACH standards can further enable. Perhaps one of the most cogent arguments for MACH as a foundation for the future of agentic AI is access to composable ecosystems. As the Alliance pointed out, “no single player can build the future of AI ecosystems.” Given that, MACH provides a sort of connective tissue by guiding brands toward open, best-of-breed solutions that work more harmoniously.<h3 id="why-it-matters">Why it matters</h3>With the rapid pace of AI transformation, the MACH Alliance might be one of the best shots at bringing some calm to the turbulence. Composable and API-first headless technologies are well-positioned for harnessing AI, MCP, and agent capabilities, and the Alliance has assembled a deep bench of member technologies that are pushing the boundaries of AI innovation. In this sense, it could be a vestige of stability and a beachhead for landing successful outcomes.A key part of the strategy relies on people, and the Alliance has invested in a cadre of resources to help support the human factor. From the pivot in its leadership model to the development of an AI Exchange, they’re making this evolution more meaningful around the challenges of the day.Will this refresh be enough to maintain the MACH Alliance's relevance within the industry zeitgeist? It’s hard to say. There have certainly been failures surrounding composable execution, but some of that is likely a product of poor planning and execution. The same penchant for overzealous AI adoption could land brands in the same pickle. So, having proven leadership, a solid ecosystem of solutions, and reliable guidance from ISVs could be the kind of relevance that really adds up for the future of the Alliance, its members, and enterprises looking to unlock the potential of agentic AI. <hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:31.61%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/storyblok-joyconf-2025-logo.jpg" /><h4 id="storyblok-joyconf-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Storyblok JoyConf 2025</a></h4>October 14-15, 2025 – Amsterdam, Netherlands November 4, 2025 – New York, NY November 6, 2025 – Los Angeles, CAJoin us at JoyConf 2025, where the future of content meets the people shaping it. Built for developers, marketers, and digital innovators, this free conference goes way beyond product updates or yet another strategy playbook. It’s where you’ll get inspired, get real, and get connected – to ideas, to the community, and to what’s possible when you build joyfully. Whether you're building lightning-fast frontends or launching cross-channel campaigns, this is where content becomes connection and collaboration becomes second nature. Come for the talks. Stay for the community. Leave with joy. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Save your spot.</a> <img style="width:28.9%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/sitecore-symposium-2025.jpg" /><h4 id="sitecore-symposium-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Sitecore Symposium 2025</a></h4>November 3-5, 2025 – Orlando, FLAt Sitecore Symposium, you’ll learn how to meet your customers where they are – across channels, moments, and touchpoints that didn’t exist a year ago. You’ll hear how the boldest brands in the world are transforming content into outcomes and creating experiences that are fast, relevant, and human. Join 1,500 marketers, digital leaders, and technologists in Orlando to see what’s possible when personalization scales, AI accelerates creativity, and trust becomes your competitive edge. This is the Third Wave of the Internet. And this is your moment to lead in it. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Get your tickets today.</a> <img style="width:31.44%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/cms-kickoff-2026-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-kickoff-2026"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">CMS Kickoff 2026</a></h4>January 13-14, 2026 – St. Petersburg, FLMeet industry leaders at our fourth annual CMS Kickoff – the industry's premier global CMS event. Similar to a traditional kickoff, we reflect on recent trends and share stories from the frontlines. Additionally, we will delve into the current happenings and shed light on the future. Prepare for an unparalleled in-person CMS conference experience that will equip you to move things forward. This is an exclusive event – space is limited, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">so secure your tickets today.</a>

An Alliance for AI: To Unlock Trusted, Agent-to-Agent Ecosystems, the MACH Alliance is Evolving

Agentic AI Is Coming. Is Your DXP Ready?

dsfaltudo

<hr /> Agents are everywhere. Literally. Last week, I covered the launch of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/vtex-expands-enterprise-capabilities-with-agentic-commerce-b2b-orchestration-and-omnichannel-power">VTEX’s new agentic entry,</a> which offers some promising potential in the realm of commerce. Prior to that, I was at the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/a-gathering-of-content-champions-heres-why-cms-connect-25-was-super-in-every-way">Boye &amp; Company CMS Connect conference,</a> where every conversation seemed to echo the word “agent.”Of course, this is just the latest crop. I’ve been watching and reporting on the emergence of the “AI agent revolution” since last year. The basic idea of an agent isn’t exactly novel or groundbreaking, but enabling this new breed of agents to harness AI is where the big opportunities lie.There are signals that might suggest we’re entering an “AI Winter,” one where brands are asking a common question surrounding their AI investments: Was it worth it? In fact, researchers at MIT published a report saying that <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://fortune.com/2025/08/18/mit-report-95-percent-generative-ai-pilots-at-companies-failing-cfo/">95% of the generative AI programs</a> launched by companies failed to deliver the one big thing they were built for: more revenue.That’s not to say AI isn’t delivering efficiency – particularly with agents and their penchant for automation. It’s the bright spot in this otherwise darkening sky of AI bedlam, and the companies that leverage agents to unleash actionable insight and tangible results will be positioned to win.<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/callminer">CallMiner</a> could be one of those winners. The company just introduced its new <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://callminer.com/products/omniagent-virtual-agent">CallMiner OmniAgent</a>, a virtual agent solution that uses advanced automation and voice-optimized AI to deliver seamless, human-like interactions across voice and digital channels. With its powerful and innovative technology, OmniAgent avoids the traditional voicebot “fumbles” often spurred by complex queries, and instead fully automates conversations – resolving customer issues faster and with less human involvement.This isn’t a fly-by-night addition to CallMiner’s ecosystem. The Waltham, Massachusetts-based company has been blazing a steady trail in its pursuit of more innovative conversation intelligence solutions and has been recognized as a Leader in the same category on the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://callminer.com/c/callminer-is-a-leader-forrester-wave-ciscc-q2-2025">2025 Forrester Wave</a> for contact centers. CallMiner also <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.finsmes.com/2019/12/callminer-receives-usd-75m-investment-from-goldman-sachs.html">closed on $75 million</a> from Goldman Sachs in 2019, which has clearly fueled innovation leading up to its recent <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://callminer.com/news/press-releases/callminer-acquires-conversational-ai-and-automation-provider-vocalls">acquisition of VOCALLS</a> in June. While recently launched, we’ll have to see how these new agents execute their intended job. But on the surface, they seem engineered for success – and could have a significant impact on enterprise strategies for AI-powered conversation intelligence. <h3 id="mining-value-with-agents">Mining value with agents</h3>AI and agentic technologies are exploding at an unpredictable rate. And it makes sense: brands are under enormous pressure to perform in a highly competitive landscape – and customers are demanding fast, accurate, and personalized service at every touchpoint. Agentic AI tools are presenting companies with huge opportunities to drive their personalization strategies across a multitude of channels. As a leader in AI-powered conversation intelligence, CallMiner already delivers one of the industry’s most comprehensive platforms for analyzing omnichannel customer interactions at scale by combining deep domain expertise with powerful <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://callminer.com/blog/how-ai-analytics-can-improve-call-center-performance">AI analytics</a>. Armed with CallMiner’s intelligence, companies can spot areas of opportunity to drive better CX – and in this rapid-fire race for customer engagement and loyalty, optimizing that experience across channels is the name of the game. With the acquisition of VOCALLS, CallMiner expanded its platform's capabilities with AI agents focused on native voice and text. These acquired capabilities are now arming the new CallMiner OmniAgent ecosystem, enabling users to transform customer experiences across voice, chat, and email through intelligent automation and AI-driven conversational insights.<h3 id="how-omniagent-works">How OmniAgent works</h3>In a nutshell, OmniAgent leverages CallMiner’s deep analytics to glean actionable data from customer interactions, implementing virtual agents for efficient, high-impact automation. And by analyzing interactions across channels, organizations can gain better insights into critical aspects of CX, including contact drivers, high-volume contacts, contacts that are quickly resolved, and more.Once its virtual agents are in place, CallMiner continuously monitors conversations to assess performance and gather feedback. This feedback helps refine virtual agent training and improve processes, leading to better customer outcomes. <figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:67.43%"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/ui_omniagent_screen_648x426.jpg" /></figure>Source: CallMiner website We already know how important feedback loops are to the overall optimization of any system or process. According to CallMiner, its OmniAgent system behaves like an automation and augmentation “infinity loop,” where conversation intelligence drives automation, automation generates new conversation data, and that data fuels continuous improvement. CallMiner is already seeing positive results in the field. One customer, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://learning.callminer.com/us/col/lc/case-study-omni-agent-supercharge-call-handing?pflpid=45098&amp;pfsid=hZkwmsaPr0">Estafeta</a>, a Mexican logistics company, reduced its average call handling time by 78%, from 420 seconds to just 90 seconds, while eliminating wait times and increasing call capacity by 120%. Estafeta’s use of the CallMiner AI voice agent has helped it efficiently handle routine inquiries like package tracking, freeing human agents to focus on other issues. This transformation has significantly improved customer experience, streamlined call center operations, and elevated Estafeta’s service quality – with 88% of users rating the voice agent positively.<h3 id="key-features">Key features</h3>There are a few standout features in OmniAgent that make it a solid and scalable AI solution. First, it offers omnichannel support, enabling brands to engage customers effortlessly across voice and digital channels. Whether through synthetic or natural human voices, images, videos, or interactive buttons, OmniAgent maintains context-aware communication and enables smooth transitions to human agents when needed.OmniAgent also provides natural language capabilities powered by advanced speech recognition and NLP, providing intuitive conversations that feel totally natural to customers. There’s also support for inbound and outbound calling, where OmniAgent handles diverse tasks – from appointment scheduling to debt collection – efficiently and effectively. With OmniAgent’s smart call routing, you can finally say goodbye to your antiquated IVR system. Where needed, OmniAgent can quickly connect customers to the right human agent and provide important interaction context while improving key contact center metrics like first call resolution.Integrations are key, and OmniAgent comes with some ready-made options, making it easy to connect your current CRM, CCaaS, and other systems to create smarter, more personalized interactions. You’ll also have access to performance management tools to monitor and optimize your virtual agent’s performance with an analytics dashboard, and you can design complex, personalized conversation flows using intuitive tools that integrate external data sources for context-aware engagement.<h3 id="pricing">Pricing</h3>CallMiner has a bit of a “black box” around its pricing, so there’s not much public guidance. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.g2.com/products/callminer-eureka/pricing">According to G2</a> and a few other sources, the company focuses on tailored solutions, so there’s not a one-size-fits-all model. It’s licensed as SaaS and offers two flexible pricing options: one based on a volume of annual inventory of hours analyzed, and one based on seats with some specific variables around usage. They also offers some packaged bundles, each providing resources for onboarding. These packages can also be customized with a la carte options. You can <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.g2.com/products/callminer-eureka/pricing">explore more of the details here.</a> Here’s a really nice benefit: Customers receive a dedicated customer success representative for the life of their CallMiner engagement, providing trusted advisory innovation without any professional services costs.If you’re a frequent reader, you know how I feel about pricing transparency. Enterprise SaaS vendors can always do better, so buyers and evaluators have an easier time understanding the parameters. At the same time, CallMiner’s options are fairly robust, and likely require some individual price refinement.<h3 id="the-verdict">The verdict</h3>OmniAgent is a potentially great fit for organizations looking to elevate their customer service capabilities, particularly in the contact center segment. By combining its new virtual agent technology with its classic leadership in conversation intelligence, CallMiner's new agentic solution can power teams to deliver faster and more personalized support. This can translate into higher satisfaction and improved operational excellence.I already discussed some of the big challenges facing AI's value quotient, and one of CallMiner’s big attributes is in cost reduction. By automating complex, high-volume customer interactions, brands can significantly lower their operational costs. And by responding to and resolving issues faster with AI, organizations can deliver more efficient customer support. This all adds up in the value column. From a CX perspective, OmniAgent can help ensure consistent, compliant, and on-brand communication that builds customer trust and satisfaction. And happier customers translate into a healthier bottom line. CallMiner offers some rich functionality. As such, it might be perceived as a little more complex than some other industry alternatives (take <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://thelevel.ai/">Level AI </a>for example). But it does provide some helpful demos and posts with detailed resources on speech analytics and other products, as well as a <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://learning.callminer.com/us">comprehensive learning center.</a> There are also some great resources in its <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://callminer.com/products/solution-catalogue">Solution Catalogue</a>, and you can browse its selection of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://callminer.com/products/integrations">ready-made integrations</a> from CRM to chatbots to speech recognition platforms. As agents go, this might be a good change. You can inquire about a <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://callminer.com/c/request-a-demo">demo here. </a> <hr /><h4 style="text-align:center" id="looking-for-guidance-on-callminer?-talk-to-an-expert.">Looking for guidance on CallMiner? <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/contact">Talk to an expert.</a></h4><hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:31.61%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/storyblok-joyconf-2025-logo.jpg" /><h4 id="storyblok-joyconf-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Storyblok JoyConf 2025</a></h4>October 14-15, 2025 – Amsterdam, Netherlands November 4, 2025 – New York, NY November 6, 2025 – Los Angeles, CAJoin us at JoyConf 2025, where the future of content meets the people shaping it. Built for developers, marketers, and digital innovators, this free conference goes way beyond product updates or yet another strategy playbook. It’s where you’ll get inspired, get real, and get connected – to ideas, to the community, and to what’s possible when you build joyfully. Whether you're building lightning-fast frontends or launching cross-channel campaigns, this is where content becomes connection and collaboration becomes second nature. Come for the talks. Stay for the community. Leave with joy. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://joyconf.storyblok.com/">Save your spot.</a> <img style="width:28.9%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/sitecore-symposium-2025.jpg" /><h4 id="sitecore-symposium-2025"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Sitecore Symposium 2025</a></h4>November 3-5, 2025 – Orlando, FLAt Sitecore Symposium, you’ll learn how to meet your customers where they are – across channels, moments, and touchpoints that didn’t exist a year ago. You’ll hear how the boldest brands in the world are transforming content into outcomes and creating experiences that are fast, relevant, and human. Join 1,500 marketers, digital leaders, and technologists in Orlando to see what’s possible when personalization scales, AI accelerates creativity, and trust becomes your competitive edge. This is the Third Wave of the Internet. And this is your moment to lead in it. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://symposium.sitecore.com/">Get your tickets today.</a> <img style="width:31.44%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/cms-kickoff-2026-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-kickoff-2026"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">CMS Kickoff 2026</a></h4>January 13-14, 2026 – St. Petersburg, FLMeet industry leaders at our fourth annual CMS Kickoff – the industry's premier global CMS event. Similar to a traditional kickoff, we reflect on recent trends and share stories from the frontlines. Additionally, we will delve into the current happenings and shed light on the future. Prepare for an unparalleled in-person CMS conference experience that will equip you to move things forward. This is an exclusive event – space is limited, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">so secure your tickets today.</a>

Agent of Change: CallMiner OmniAgent Promises to Transform CX with AI-Powered Intelligence

A Gathering of Content Champions: Here’s Why CMS Connect 25 was ‘Super’ in Every Way

Call Tracking + AI 

Call Tracking + AI that Turns Calls into Leads

<hr /> When I last spoke to <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariano-gomide-de-faria-vtex/">Mariano Gomide de Faria</a>, it wasn't long after he published <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mariano-gomide-de-faria-vtex_for-all-the-reasons-explained-in-the-article-activity-7310313384015511552-APGm/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop&amp;rcm=ACoAABz8skQBu3yAX4WwKnVszlZSL3qGoPZCq6w">“The MACH Mirage”</a> on LinkedIn. It was a veritable shock to the system that pointedly criticized aspects of the composable movement – and, with specificity, the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/mach-alliance-aims-to-evolve-enterprise-ai-architecture-with-new-end-user-leadership-model">MACH Alliance.</a> At the time, he announced that <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/vtex">VTEX</a> (the connected commerce platform he founded and steers as co-CEO) would be pausing its membership in the best-of-breed ecosystem, citing the drift of composability from operator control as a central grievance. Famously, both Mariano and MACH Alliance president <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/the-future-is-composable-a-conversation-with-new-mach-alliance-president-casper-rasmussen">Casper Rasmussen</a> met on “The Watson Weekend” retail program to hash out some of the issues in a town square forum. The debate was friendly, healthy, and focused squarely on the challenges of enterprise architecture – which is being transformed by the advent of AI across the composable stack. And that’s the big tuna. The crucial role of AI in digital commerce can’t be overstated, and this is precisely where Mariano felt the MACH Alliance could be more prolific in supporting its association – and the market at large – in the AI course corrections. In his mind, this required less a less rigid approach to the enshrined standards of MACH.“At the end of the day, we cannot close our eyes to the reinvention of SIs informed by a future where AI rules,” he said, pointing out how organizations like the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://nrf.com/">National Retail Federation</a> could also help to lead discussions that generate value. Since then, VTEX has been putting its nose to the grindstone and building its own ecosystem for agentic commerce. And the timing couldn’t be more apropos: During my many interviews and discussions at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/the-deep-dish-on-composable-6-tasty-takeaways-from-the-mach-alliances-2025-conference">“The Composable Conference”</a> in April (the annual MACH Alliance event), agentic commerce was already lighting the world on fire. The noise level has only increased over the last few months, and the push to adopt these capabilities is reaching a fever pitch. According to a recent <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/2025/03/20/agentic-commerce-ecommerce-trends/">Digital Commerce 360 survey</a>, over 44% of e-commerce leaders are already seeing strong results from their AI investments, and a <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://rierino.com/blog/agentic-commerce-with-ai-agents">study from Rierino</a> suggests that agentic frameworks are also paying off with a 6-10% increase in revenue and a big bump in order efficiency.Now, VTEX is shipping its automated agentic AI workforce – and other features – into prime time as part of an expansion of its enterprise-grade capabilities. Unveiled at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fvtex.com%2Fen-us%2Fvision%2F2025&amp;esheet=54310335&amp;newsitemid=20250819007039&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=VTEX+Vision+2025&amp;index=1&amp;md5=8e8045401ca4c78ebfc0f12961001495">VTEX Vision 2025</a>, its annual digital showcase, the company’s latest release includes new solutions tailored to B2B complexity and personalized omnichannel experiences. “Enterprise commerce doesn’t slow down in the face of complexity,” Mariano said. “It rewards those who turn it into leverage. With VTEX Vision 2025, we have expanded our infrastructure to meet rising demands, from B2B buyer personalization to seamless consumer retail experiences, all on one unified commerce platform built for growth.” <h3 id="capabilities-that-convert-and-scale-for-the-b2b-enterprise">Capabilities that convert and scale for the B2B enterprise</h3>In the pantheon of digital commerce, B2B operates with its own set of rules, requiring intuitive digital infrastructure that’s built to move high-volume transactions and manage the full complexity of modern procurement. VTEX’s B2B innovation reinforces a key truth that enterprise leaders know: Success requires infrastructure built around how corporate buyers manage procurement, not systems that restrict transactions. This is where VTEX has its edge, and its Vision for B2B is bringing core capabilities to support these requirements.What’s in the new release? Personalized catalogs, pricing, and payment methods per buyer, as well as advanced buyer organization management that includes branch structures, role-based access, budgeting, and policy control.Brands will also have access to buying policies and approval workflows that enforce custom procurement rules automatically, and rapid cart creation that leverages quick order tools by file and search term. There’s also SKU matrix and reorder tools for high-frequency purchasing and native punchout integrations to centralize procurement within enterprise systems.From a market validation perspective, Andy Hoar's <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fvtex.com%2Fen-us%2Fcampaign%2Fparadigm-b2b-report-2025%2F&amp;esheet=54310335&amp;newsitemid=20250819007039&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=B2B+Paradigm+2025&amp;index=2&amp;md5=9e2f7662e0ed2cad3ef71cd6af712a9d">B2B Paradigm 2025</a> report recognized VTEX with the most Gold medals across its Enterprise and Mid-Market categories, including key metrics like TCO and marketplace capabilities. <h3 id="the-next-level-of-omnichannel">The next level of omnichannel</h3>We’ve been talking about omnichannel for a long time, and how composable stacks help support these strategies. But for enterprise brands, true omnichannel is still a bit elusive. Why? Blame inventory silos, delayed delivery updates, and disconnected store operations (for starters), which block many organizations from operating at their full potential. VTEX closes these gaps by strengthening the “operational backbone” needed to move with speed, accuracy, and complete fulfillment control. AI is helping to power these features in VTEX. This includes AI Semantic Search, which delivers relevant results by interpreting shopper intent through natural language. There’s also AI Product Recommendations that help drive conversions with personalized, behavior-based suggestions.With VTEX, Distributed Inventory is unified and made available across every channel, covering B2C, B2B, marketplaces, and stores. Multi-seller Carts also merge 1P, 3P, and in-store items into one seamless checkout experience, making the entire lifecycle faster and easier.VTEX’s Delivery Promise is also a powerful fixture, helping shoppers find products that are located near them and can be delivered quickly. There’s also Cross-Channel Fulfillment, where newly simplified BOPIS (buy online, pick up in store), ship from store, and simplified returns can lead to operational cost reductions and improved inventory accuracy.<h3 id="agentic-commerce:-the-enterprise-ai-workforce">Agentic commerce: The enterprise AI workforce</h3>For the unindoctrinated, agentic commerce is the application of autonomous AI agents that work independently within a digital commerce system. They’re bestowed with “agency,” meaning they can make decisions, execute tasks, and adapt to context across both frontend and backend workflows. Agentic commerce isn’t just recommending things. It’s effectively running parts of your business with autonomy, tapping more adaptive AI and intelligent automation capabilities that can execute on their behalf. The explosive gains in productivity are making agentic commerce incredibly popular as brands and enterprises look to move faster across channels.Enterprise commerce is entering a new operational era, and VTEX is helping to lead that shift with agentic AI built that can effectively streamline critical workflows and accelerate enterprise performance across the globe. To kick off its roadmap to a fully agentic commerce platform, VTEX is launching three AI agents that are engineered around precision, speed, and adaptability. As the company stated, it’s the beginning of a new standard where digital infrastructure operates as intelligently as the enterprises it serves.“As VTEX advances toward a fully agentic commerce platform, we continue to transform cost centers into engines of growth with measurable impact,” Mariano said. “Our first wave of AI agents marks a critical step, compressing complex workflows and unlocking new value for global brands. Flexibility, transparency, and real-time adaptability will define the next generation of enterprise leaders. Anything else will be left behind.”Some cool capabilities are rolling out, starting with VTEX’s Customer Service Agent, a fully autonomous support agent that works across WhatsApp, Instagram, SMS, and more. Brands like UNICEF and Cencosud are currently using it, which, according to VTEX, has already resolved 92% of tickets without human input – and cut AHT from hours to minutes. Impressive results to be sure.Forthcoming is a Visual Editor Agent, which promises some powerful experience-level capabilities with no developer support required. Teams will be able to instantly respond to change by updating a storefront using a <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/figma">Figma</a> file or natural language.Finally, VTEX’s Data Insights Agent is all about powering productivity and observability across channels. The agent receives priority access to real-time omnichannel performance data in plain language, without the need for static dashboards or SQL queries.<h3 id="why-it-matters-">Why it matters </h3>“There's no survival without passing through this chaotic moment,” Mariano said. We were discussing the embedded challenges with navigating legacy systems and how many companies are still modernizing from old IBM mainframes. That might sound a little arcane, but we’ve come a long way on the frontier of interoperability. The MACH Alliance has played a huge role in shaping that, but we’re in yet another chaos moment – one where AI is rendering our roadmaps almost useless. Brands are having to react to change instantly, and commerce is going to need the scale and automation of agentic AI to win customers across channels. To its credit, the MACH Alliance is putting greater emphasis on the AI horizon, manifesting in more end-user representation at the top of the organization. Recently, Casper Rasmussen announced that he will be stepping down as president, and the Alliance will begin shifting to an <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/mach-alliance-aims-to-evolve-enterprise-ai-architecture-with-new-end-user-leadership-model">end-user leadership model</a> to support enterprise AI architecture. Will this help mend some of the fences with VTEX? Does it address the core issues surrounding operator control with the composable system? Probably not. There's a rhyme to MACH's reason, and maintaining fierce standards is part of that language. But we’ll see how things unfold. One thing is certain: Mariano will continue his quest for greater flexibility in a market that’s being utterly transformed by AI. “History proves that the highest risk position we can take now would be not assuming any risk,” he told me. “And that serves for NRF, that serves for the MACH Alliance, that serves for any association.”Institutional disagreements aside, VTEX is clearly pushing to innovate on its own terms with agentic commerce, and this could power its already strong collection of 3,400 active storefronts across 43 countries with less friction, greater productivity, and an even nimbler posture. Based on its measurable successes with real customers using its preliminary agents, VTEX is making real headway toward its vision of an autonomous platform that powers the future of digital commerce for B2B and B2C models. They certainly have the chops and market credentials to lead the way, with more than 2,400 brands trusting its technology to unify omnichannel sales, intelligent order management, data pipelines, retail media, enterprise-grade security, and more.It’s early days, so it will be interesting to see how VTEX's pricing models evolve surrounding its agent services. But for buyers with complex requirements and global fulfillment demands, the promise of agentic commerce could be a game changer – with the right platform to build on.  <hr /><h4 style="text-align:center" id="looking-for-guidance-on-vtex?-talk-to-an-expert.">Looking for guidance on VTEX? <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/contact">Talk to an expert.</a></h4><hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:31.44%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/08/cms-kickoff-2026-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-kickoff-2026"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">CMS Kickoff 2026</a></h4>January 13-14, 2026 – St. Petersburg, FloridaMeet industry leaders at our fourth annual CMS Kickoff – the industry's premier global CMS event. Similar to a traditional kickoff, we reflect on recent trends and share stories from the frontlines. Additionally, we will delve into the current happenings and shed light on the future. Prepare for an unparalleled in-person CMS conference experience that will equip you to move things forward. This is an exclusive event – space is limited, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff26">so secure your tickets today.</a>

VTEX Expands Enterprise Capabilities with Agentic Commerce, B2B Orchestration, and Omnichannel Power

Shopify - The global commerce platform

Build your business with Shopify to sell online, offline, and everywhere in between.

The global commerce platform

Explore a wide range of informative articles, insights, and industry updates. Stay informed and ahead of the curve with our diverse collection of news and posts covering the latest trends and developments in the industry. 

News

Power your CMS on AWS

Call Tracking + AI that Turns Calls into Leads

The global commerce platform