Unlock the Future of Shopping: Must-See Ecommerce Tools Changing the Game on January 7, 2026!
Ever wonder how many new tools a merchant can realistically juggle before their head spins? Well, this week’s roundup might just test that limit — from marketing platforms that peek into every corner of shopper behavior, to livestream tools that promise you can book a shoppable event faster than it takes to brew your coffee. And it doesn’t stop there. We’re talking pop-up and form builders with razor-sharp visual control, fulfillment networks bulking up their reach, AI voice agents learning on the fly, and even agent-to-agent advertising that sounds straight out of a sci-fi thriller. Oh, and reverse logistics getting a makeover so sellers can turn returns into revenue instead of red ink. It’s a wild, wonderful marketplace out there — and if keeping up feels a bit like chasing a greased pig, you’re not alone! Ready to dive into the latest merchant-savvy innovations? LEARN MORE.
This week’s installment of new products and services for merchants includes marketing and advertising platforms, livestream tools, pop-up and form builders, fulfillment networks, AI voice agents, agentic commerce, and reverse logistics.
Got an ecommerce product release? Email updates@practicalecommerce.com.
New Tools for Merchants
Orca launches LiveMax to book a shoppable livestream in minutes. Orca, a livestream and social commerce provider, has launched LiveMax, a self-serve tool that empowers brands and retailers to book and execute shoppable livestreams on TikTok Shop and Amazon Live. According to Orca, LiveMax enables any brand to schedule a produced livestream quickly. Orca’s production resources include professional hosts and producers.
Orca
PayPal Ads launches Transaction Graph Insights and Measurement. PayPal Ads has launched its Transaction Graph Insights and Measurement Program, providing merchants and advertisers with a view into shopper behavior, campaign effectiveness, and data-driven recommendations. The tools help understand cross-merchant, cross-surface shopper journeys to deliver brand-specific recommendations and independent campaign validation with third-party partners.
Slingwave brings AI-powered unified measurement to ecommerce. Slingwave has unveiled its AI-native marketing platform for ecommerce and direct-to-consumer brands. The system combines marketing mix modeling, agile marketing attribution, and experimentation with an intelligence layer and customized models that run millions of scenarios to deliver a clear plan for optimizing spend. According to Slingwave, the platform learns with every campaign, ensuring recommendations continuously improve.
Getsitecontrol updates widget builder for pop-ups and forms. Getsitecontrol, an email marketing platform for ecommerce, has released a redesigned widget editor that offers enhanced visual control when designing website pop-ups, forms, and teasers. The editor introduces a visual element tree that displays the complete structure of each widget in a sidebar. Getsitecontrol now allows users to fine-tune every visual aspect of their widgets, including margins, paddings, alignment, sizes, and colors. The result, says Getsitecontrol, is professional widgets that adapt to any screen size.
ReturnPro launches Shopify app. ReturnPro, a provider of returns management and reverse logistics, has launched its Returns Portal App on the Shopify App Store. The app combines returns initiation with a connected reverse supply chain and recommerce ecosystem. Shopify merchants gain access to ReturnPro’s infrastructure, including more than 1,000 partner drop-off locations. Merchants can resell refurbished inventory through their Shopify storefronts or distribute products across ReturnPro’s network of integrated marketplaces, creating secondary revenue streams and reducing write-offs.
ReturnPro
Stord acquires Shipwire to expand its fulfillment network. Stord, a logistics provider for pre-purchase, checkout, delivery, and returns, has acquired Shipwire, a subsidiary of Ceva Logistics. Stord says the acquisition continues its expansion of fulfillment networks by adding 12 locations, strengthening its presence in Europe, and maintaining access to Ceva’s global network of warehouses through Shipwire’s existing logistics agreements. Ceva manages 120 million square feet of warehouse space worldwide.
Amazon launches Alexa+ for users to chat with its assistant. Amazon has launched an Alexa+ website that lets select users chat with its assistant via their browser. Users can access Alexa.com to get quick answers, explore complex topics, create content, and more. Alexa.com combines information with real-world actions, offering integrations across devices for shopping, home control, cooking, and entertainment, per Amazon. Customers with early access to Alexa+ can visit Alexa.com while logged into their Amazon account and start chatting.
ITTRackNap launches marketplace and subscription commerce platform. ITTRackNap, an AI-powered marketplace and subscription automation platform for cloud and technology providers, announced its U.S. launch. The platform enables managed service providers, telecommunications and connectivity providers, and technology distributors to launch and scale cloud and digital commerce faster and cost-effectively. RackNap streamlines and lowers the cost of channel back-office operations through native integrations with hyperscalers and portals, including Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, Google, and Acronis.
PubMatic launches AgenticOS for agent-to-agent advertising. PubMatic, an ad tech company, has launched AgenticOS, an operating system to orchestrate autonomous, agent-to-agent advertising across digital environments. AgenticOS deploys a three-layer framework to plan, transact, and optimize programmatic advertising: (i) an Nvidia-powered infrastructure layer, (ii) an application layer with embedded agentic capabilities to interpret intent through protocols such as the Ad Context and Model Context, and (iii) a transaction layer that connects agentic decisioning to PubMatic’s Activate buying platform.
PubMatic
eBay introduces credit notes for U.S. seller fees and tax reversals. eBay is issuing separate credit notes for all seller fees, charges, and tax reversals in the U.S. A credit note reduces or cancels an invoice. Each credit note will show the reduced amounts and reference to the original invoice. According to eBay, the update improves transparency and helps match charges with reversals.
Cloudhands launches cross-model AI platform. Cloudhands, a marketplace for AI tools, has announced a new unified platform that lets users move among leading models such as OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google while keeping their conversation history, documents, tasks, and creative work connected. Interested users can join the waitlist for the platform, which will launch early this year, per Cloudhands.
xAI launches Grok Business and Grok Enterprise. xAI, the chatbot natively integrated into X, has launched Grok Business and Grok Enterprise, two new tiers providing access to Grok 3, Grok 4, and Grok 4 Heavy. Grok Business offers a self-serve process for small-to-medium teams. For larger organizations, Grok Enterprise includes Grok Business plus Custom Single Sign-On, Directory Sync, and audit and security controls.
VoAgents launches enterprise voice AI platform for customer conversations. VoAgents, a provider of enterprise voice tools, has launched voice AI agents capable of handling inbound and outbound calls. The platform’s self-learning capability means voice agents improve with every interaction. Core platform features include customizable voice personalities and workflows tailored to brand requirements, calendar and customer-management integrations, real-time call recordings and transcripts, outbound campaign management, and more. VoAgents offers access to all leading language models, including OpenAI and Anthropic.
VoAgents
