The Unglamorous Reality of AI at Scale. Lessons from the Zalando Assistant.
27 November 2026 · 11:15
The industry has moved past the AI novelty phase, but many teams are still just bolting AI onto legacy features. Building true AI-first products means completely rewiring traditional development. This talk cuts through the hype to share the unglamorous realities of shipping AI at scale.
Join me for a behind-the-scenes look at how we built the Zalando AI Assistant. I’ll share our real-world failures, what actually worked, and how we manage the unpredictable nature of AI development.
I’ll also explore what it really takes to build a compelling experience, highlighting the tough realities of user desires versus what is incredibly hard to deliver when working with probabilistic outcomes.