Target announced on Tuesday that it has appointed Chandhu Nair as its first chief artificial intelligence officer and senior vice president, a newly created role the retailer said is designed to coordinate its growing investment in generative AI across inventory management, customer experience, and internal decision-making.
News Summary
- Target appointed Chandhu Nair as its first chief AI officer and senior vice president, effective August 24, 2026.
- Nair previously served as senior vice president of stores, data, AI, and innovation at Lowe’s, and has held roles at Staples and Gap.
- Target also named Purvi Shah as senior vice president of user experience.
- The retailer has deployed generative AI tools including Target Trend Brain for trend forecasting and a conversational AI program for holiday gift recommendations.
- The appointment follows similar AI investments by rivals Walmart, Gap, and Best Buy, and arrives as the retail industry races to integrate artificial intelligence into operations.
The company also named Purvi Shah as senior vice president of user experience. Both appointments are effective August 24, according to a company statement.
Nair’s Mandate
Nair joins Target from Lowe’s, where he led the company’s AI transformation office, data and analytics practice, and AI products and platforms teams. He also oversaw Lowe’s Innovation Labs and was responsible for technology enabling marketing, media, personalization, and loyalty experiences, according to his professional biography. Before Lowe’s, he held roles at Staples and Gap.
In a statement, Nair said his focus would be a “more coordinated approach” to AI at Target, including improving inventory management and enabling faster business decisions. “The most meaningful AI stories won’t be about what happens in a lab,” he said. “They’ll be about what happens on the front line , how we make shopping easier for a guest, give a team member a better tool, make a business decision with more confidence or bring a new idea to market faster.”
Target’s Existing AI Tools
The appointment formalizes AI leadership at a company that has already begun deploying generative AI tools. Target Trend Brain, an internal system the retailer has discussed publicly, is designed to help buyers anticipate trends by identifying the styles, colors, and materials customers are likely to search for in upcoming seasons.
During the most recent holiday season, Target launched a conversational AI program intended to help shoppers find gifts by guiding them through a dialogue about the recipient’s interests and preferences. The company has not disclosed usage metrics or revenue impact for either tool.
Retail Industry Races to Adopt AI
Target’s move arrives as major retailers accelerate their AI investments. Walmart has been rolling out AI tools and agents across its stores and supply chains to improve customer experience and internal efficiency. Gap announced a partnership with Google’s Gemini earlier this year. Best Buy has established collaborations with both OpenAI and Google.
The competitive pressure extends to the executive suite. Former Walmart CEO Doug McMillon told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” in December that he decided to retire and hand leadership to John Furner, who became chief executive on February 1, 2026, in part because he believed the next phase of retail would be defined by agentic commerce and AI-driven shopping.
“About a year ago, I really started feeling like this next run, you could see what agentic commerce was going to look like, the vision for AI shopping, and I started thinking about everything that needs to happen over the next few years, and it really caused me to think that now was the right time [to step down],” McMillon said at the time.
Target has struggled to win back shoppers and investors in recent quarters, though the company did not explicitly link the new AI leadership to any specific financial recovery plan. The retailer said Nair would report to chief information officer Brett Craig and would be based at its Minneapolis headquarters.