Watching AI Robots Go Car Shopping

[joe.pistell]

Every 30 days, I go car shopping with AI. Today, we're at DEFCON2.

DEFCON 2 represents a heightened state of military readiness, indicating that an attack is expected, but not imminent

AI is not fully ready for prime time, but, the structure is there. The bleeding edge of Pioneering dealers see this coming. @Ryan Everson is one.

IMO, by 2027, your customers will have personal AI shopping assistants that follow them through the ENTIRE purchase journey.

Car-Shopper “Jobs to Be Done” (high-level)​

1. Define Needs & Budget
   Clarify use-case, must-have features, and comfortable payment/price ceiling.
2. Product Research
   Compare makes, models, trims, reliability, ownership costs, incentives.
3. Inventory Analysis
   Locate VIN-level vehicles that match specs; check mileage, condition, and pricing.
4. Dealership / Seller Evaluation
   Vet dealer reputation, transparency, service ratings, and distance/shipping options.
5. Vehicle Evaluation
   Arrange test drives or third-party inspections; validate comfort, performance, and feature fit.
6. Deal Structuring & Negotiation
   Align on price, trade-in value, incentives, out-the-door numbers, and timeline.
7. Finance & Insurance (F&I)
   Secure financing or lease terms, choose add-ons (GAP, service contracts), finalize paperwork.
8. Delivery & Setup
   Take possession, verify documentation, set up connected-car services, schedule first service visit.

Just over the horizon, so fundamental is the charge that is manifesting, the entire dealer org will need to reinvent itself.


I'm in AI 3-4 hrs a day. My startup has pivoted to use 'AI Compute' as it's merchandising engine. Watching all of this, I bet that by 2027, AI will have hit critical mass and it'll be topic #1 at #DMSC27 and I bet @brianpasch will be riding this wave.

 

[joe.pistell]

This is month #3.
Today, I ask AI for a hard one: "Find me the 3 best Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE with under 15k"

***PROMPT***
You are my car shopping assistant. Find me the 3 best Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE AWD (Plug-in Hybrid) under 15,000 miles. I want the lowest miles possible. clean carfax. I want it well equipped with a good price. I prefer to buy it from a toyota dealer with good reviews. Search some where within 50 miles of 13029.

We have a talk, AI finds 3 locally, all are over 15k. I ask AI to look nationwide, ***Total AI Compute time: 13mins · 48 sources · 140 unique searches*** We settle on "DCH Brunswick Toyota" (100's of miles away, they have shipping)

LOOK: AI Asks me: "Let me know if you’d like me to connect you directly with a salesperson, pull the actual window-sticker PDFs, or get a firm shipping quote"

I simply had a discussion, AI worked it hard. See the entire AI discussion thread here: https://chatgpt.com/share/680efbf3-c7f4-8006-952d-ffe60342e8f7