Empowering retail employees with AI: MediaMarktSaturn partners with Accenture, Avanade and Microsoft

MediaMarktSaturn, renowned as one of Europe’s leading electronics retailers, had an ambitious goal: to help customers navigate an increasingly vast and fast-evolving inventory of products by empowering store associates to quickly find and convey the right information. The result was a solution that combined human ingenuity, next-generation technology, and close collaboration with Accenture and Avanade and Microsoft. That solution is called MyBuddy, and it’s redefining how employees interact with customers on the store floor.

Mastering a complex catalog

The biggest obstacle MediaMarktSaturn faced stemmed from the sheer volume of products with ever-changing specifications. With a constantly evolving catalog and shifting customer expectations, it is unrealistic to assume that employees can memorize details for each device or stay consistently up to date on weekly product launches. As new inventory arrived, store associates needed an immediate way to access product information without interrupting customer conversations.

“The entire environment we are operating in is changing so fast. Every month, there is a new exciting product. Digitalization creates a permanently customized environment in every customer’s home. And AI is in more and more products. Our customers need support and guidance,” said Henny Steiniger, VP of Services & Solutions, CX and Care at MediaMarktSaturn.

Training programs have long been a priority for MediaMarktSaturn, yet there is a practical limit to how much can be taught in a short timeframe. When employees shift departments or new staff are onboarded, it takes time to bring them up to speed. This was precisely the gap that MyBuddy set out to fill. As Steiniger put it:

“AI is an enabler to achieve the idea of ‘experience electronics.’ It’s a tool, part of a bigger strategy to help enable personalized experiences for our customers.”

By embracing artificial intelligence and harnessing cloud-based innovations, MediaMarktSaturn found a way to help its workforce keep pace with customers’ interests.

AI at the point of purchase

In collaboration with Microsoft and Accenture and Avanade, MediaMarktSaturn developed MyBuddy, a multi-language, real-time, voice-enabled AI agent that employees wear in-ear. This allows store associates to have a conversation with a customer while seamlessly interacting with a cutting-edge AI assistant.

“We are constantly looking for new technologies and great partners to create unique experiences for our customers and all our employees. With Microsoft and Accenture and Avanade, we found the perfect fit to push our boundaries of experience,” said Felix Meyner, Platform Owner, Customer and Marketing at MediaMarktSaturn.

The technology at the heart of MyBuddy is powered by Microsoft Azure OpenAI, which provides secure access to advanced generative AI models through the cloud. Microsoft also brings integration capabilities with MediaMarktSaturn’s existing systems, ensuring MyBuddy can draw on structured product databases, support content, and inventory systems in real time. These capabilities make it possible for employees to retrieve up-to-date and context-aware answers via voice commands—no typing or screen interaction required.

According to Steiniger: “Training is a constant for us. We totally believe that great onboarding and great training for our employees are among the biggest drivers for experience electronics. So this is something we constantly strive for, develop, and push further. What’s new here with MyBuddy is the technical abilities we now have.”

From the perspective of the broader industry, companies in every sector are grappling with how to deploy and operationalize generative AI.

“Everyone at the moment is facing the same challenges. Everyone is trying to get value out of GenAI, and everyone is trying to drive business value—finding the right business case, and also the right way to implement this technology in a safe and secure way,” said Annika Grosse, who leads Global Data and AI at Avanade.

She explains the approach that helped launch MyBuddy: “The secret of success is usually starting with a lot of speed, testing out many ideas, involving many stakeholders, and making sure that you end up with something really helpful, really valuable—and then you plan a great rollout.”

This rapid experimentation proved especially crucial for MyBuddy, which needed to be more than just a technical proof of concept. Grosse notes that the focus was on providing real value:

“This is not about cutting costs, cutting heads, or even just being efficient,” she explains, “but about really helping the employees create the best of all experiences for their customers.”

Thanks to Microsoft cloud infrastructure, the voice-powered interface operates with low latency and high reliability, even during peak in-store hours. Sales associates no longer need to turn away from conversations or search for printed materials. Instead, they simply ask MyBuddy to compare features, check warranty information, or recommend the best fit for a customer’s budget—delivering real-time answers, right in the moment.

Empowered employees, confident customers

By leveraging Azure OpenAI, MyBuddy now enables retail conversations that feel more natural and confident—ultimately driving better outcomes in-store. MediaMarktSaturn’s Sandro Kurpiers, who serves as AI Lead, described MyBuddy’s impact:

“With the MyBuddy project, we have a very interesting, cutting-edge solution for our employees—for our colleagues in the stores—to support our customers.”

Because MyBuddy runs in real time, associates don’t lose momentum when customers need highly specific information. Whether it’s comparing the energy efficiency of different appliances or calculating how a new device might integrate with existing smart-home systems, MyBuddy delivers insights instantly.

In the end, MyBuddy represents something larger than just another product launch; it demonstrates the power of AI to elevate the human experience.

Steiniger is optimistic for the leadership and partnership around AI: “With the solutions we’ve seen by Microsoft, like Personalized Shopping Agent, we’re very excited how far we got in just two months. So, just envision what we could be capable of if we keep that speed and keep it at that scale, and drive it even further.”

By blending robust technology, a clear vision of employee empowerment, and a deep respect for the customer journey, MediaMarktSaturn has created an environment where people trust the expertise of their sales associates and feel more confident in their purchase decisions. The partnership with Microsoft and Accenture and Avanade underlines a simple truth: when stakeholders align around real-world applications and deliver solutions that meet tangible needs, AI ceases to be futuristic and becomes an everyday tool that transforms how businesses serve their customers.