Ron Johnson, who was responsible for building Apple's retail business, stated that despite Silicon Valley pouring billions into AI agent shopping, he believes the industry overestimates the extent to which consumers will delegate shopping to machines and predicts that physical stores will continue to thrive. He pointed out that when purchasing personal items like laptops, consumers still want to experience the product firsthand, and AI primarily helps consumers gather more information before entering a store. Johnson emphasized that Apple's "secret weapon" has always been its in-store employees and their service, not sales pressure. He believes that AI cannot provide a physical product experience and will only make customers who visit the store more informed.