Morrisons has appointed Mohsen Ghasempour as its first chief artificial intelligence officer, creating a central data science and AI function intended to connect technology investment with customer growth, store operations, manufacturing and commercial decision-making.
Ghasempour confirmed the move on 24 September after more than five years at Kingfisher, where he served as chief AI officer and helped develop artificial intelligence applications across B&Q, Screwfix, Castorama and Brico Dépôt.
“I am very excited to share that I will be starting my next chapter with Morrisons,” he said. Morrisons chief executive Rami Baitiéh welcomed the appointment and said he was excited about what would follow.
The newly created role is expected to bring responsibility for data and AI strategy into one function. Its stated priorities include customer growth, support for colleagues, operational efficiency, manufacturing excellence and commercial performance.
That breadth matters because Morrisons is both a retailer and a food manufacturer. Its vertically integrated model covers farms, abattoirs, bakeries, seafood operations and food-production sites, giving the new AI function potential applications beyond online shopping and store technology.
For supermarket buyers, the most valuable uses are likely to be practical. Better forecasting could reduce gaps on shelves and excessive stock, while more accurate promotional planning could help trading teams judge whether expected volume can be supplied without damaging availability or margin.
Supplier data will be central to that work. AI recommendations are only as reliable as the information behind them, including lead times, pack sizes, production capacity, shelf life, promotional commitments and store-level demand.
A central function could make those inputs more consistent across buying, supply chain and manufacturing teams. It could also reduce the risk of separate departments building overlapping systems or using conflicting definitions of product and supplier performance.
Morrisons already has several operational AI projects. Its Product Finder uses Google Cloud technology to interpret customer searches and identify where products are located in stores. The tool recorded around 50,000 daily uses during the Easter period cited when the service was announced.
The retailer has also introduced computer-vision technology at self-checkouts and is expanding digital shelf-edge capabilities. These systems create a growing stream of store data, but the commercial value depends on whether insights can be translated into fewer interventions, better availability and more productive labour.
Ghasempour has previously described AI as “a tool, not a mission”. At Kingfisher, his approach included spending time on shop floors to understand the operational problems technology was being asked to solve.
That discipline will be important at Morrisons. Grocery stores operate with tighter margins, faster stock rotation and more perishable inventory than home-improvement retail. A model that performs well in a controlled test can still create disruption if it adds tasks for colleagues, produces poor substitutions or conflicts with existing replenishment routines.
The appointment also raises governance questions. A central AI team will need clear controls covering customer data, automated pricing, supplier information, model accuracy and accountability when recommendations are wrong.
Retailers are investing in AI to improve demand forecasting, personalisation, loss prevention and workforce planning, but suppliers need transparency when automated decisions affect orders, promotions or range reviews. Human oversight remains particularly important when a data anomaly could alter production requirements or product availability.
Morrisons remains one of the leading businesses in the UK supermarket market, where investments in data are increasingly tied to price competitiveness and operating efficiency.
The appointment also reflects the broader shift towards retail technology in supermarkets, moving AI responsibility from individual projects towards a permanent leadership function.
The next indication of the strategy’s direction will be how Ghasempour structures the central team and which projects Morrisons prioritises first. For buyers and suppliers, the key measure will be whether the new function produces clearer forecasts, more dependable orders and better on-shelf availability rather than simply adding another layer of technology.
Editor’s note: Based on Mohsen Ghasempour’s appointment announcement of 24 September 2026 and Morrisons’ existing AI programme, with additional GTN analysis of grocery procurement, supplier data and store operations.
