Why the speed of AI is the biggest competitive threat — and opportunity — dealers face.

The challenge I have in writing this column, as I sit here in the mountains of Montana in late September, is that by the time you read it, my words will already be out of date. The imperative I have in writing this is that if you don’t get this message, your dealership risks being out of date, too.

Short and simple: Don’t blink, because AI won’t wait for you.

Artificial intelligence has gone mainstream at lightning speed. What was once a parlor trick is now inside search engines, CRMs, ad platforms, and even the way your customers shop. By now, you’ve heard the buzzwords. But what you may not realize is just how fast AI is changing the rules of retail and how directly it will affect you and your business.

Here’s one story that should stop you cold: According to Fortune (in an article researched and drafted by AI, then edited and approved by a human) 30-year-old entrepreneur Zach Shefska has built an AI negotiator that can haggle down the price of a car. His company, CarEdge, launched the tool this summer, and within weeks it had already been used more than 10,000 times. Customers pay $40 for access, tell the AI exactly what vehicle they want, and then let the software negotiate with dealers directly. In one example, it cut nearly $1,800 off a Toyota RAV4. In another, it saved $5,000 on a Corvette. On average, it saves consumers more than $1,000 and five hours of back-and-forth haggling.

Think about that for a moment. Buyers who only shop for a vehicle every three to five years are now represented by an AI that negotiates every single day, with six years of pricing data behind it. It methodically compares offers, identifies hidden fees, and pushes for better terms with the persistence of a seasoned negotiator. It’s not hard to imagine similar tools entering the boating market.

This is the velocity of AI. It’s not tomorrow’s technology. It’s here, and it’s already changing consumer expectations. Your next customer may walk into your showroom having consulted an AI about your pricing, your reviews, and your competitors long before your sales team shakes their hand.

And this isn’t a fringe development. The global AI market was valued at roughly $184 billion in 2024. By 2030, it’s projected to reach more than $826 billion — quadrupling in size in just six years. That makes AI one of the fastest-growing technology sectors in history. To put that in perspective: it took smartphones more than a decade to become mainstream; broadband internet spread over nearly 20 years. AI is on pace to outstrip both in under six.

Think about what that means for your customers. The same buyers who resisted online boat shopping just a few years ago are now using AI every day to write emails, to plan vacations, to price-shop cars. It’s not a leap to imagine them expecting the same speed, personalization and convenience when they shop for a boat.

What makes this even more staggering is the pace of the underlying technology itself. The computing horsepower behind AI is doubling roughly every nine months. For perspective, that’s like going from a 150-horsepower outboard to a 300 in less than a year — and then doubling again before you’ve even broken in the engine. By the end of 2026, the AI models available will be several generations ahead of what we’re experimenting with today. In dealership terms, while you’re just getting comfortable with chatbots, automated lead follow-up and asking AI to write your social posts for you, your customers will already be using AI to research, compare and even negotiate boat purchases in ways we can’t yet imagine.

If that sounds like a lot to keep up with, you’re not alone. At last year’s Dealer Week, two of the top-rated sessions were on AI, delivered by Marcus Sheridan, a best-selling author who, as a marine dealership investor, understands firsthand your daily grind, the pressures of meeting sales targets and the constant challenge of standing out in a crowded market. His messages were so impactful that other organizations immediately hired him to speak at their own events. At Cobalt’s 2026 dealer meeting, the audience heard that the manufacturer booked Marcus because a dealer said one of his Dealer Week sessions alone was worth the investment in sending their whole team to the event. That’s the kind of credibility and clarity Marcus brings.

And this December, Marcus is back for Dealer Week 2025 (Tampa, Dec. 7-10; DealerWeek.com). He’ll be delivering two all-new sessions: one on How to Market and Sell to the AI-empowered Boat Shopper, and another on the Seven AI Tools every dealership can and must deploy in the next 12 months. We’re talking about practical, immediately usable applications, from greeting web leads in under 60 seconds, to delivering trade-in valuations before the prospect leaves your lot, to creating searchable transcripts that double as coaching tools for rookie sales pros.

Marcus won’t be the only one to provide opportunities for you to further explore how AI can move your business forward. The Dealer Week Expo Hall will feature numerous exhibitors showcasing AI-powered technology designed specifically for dealerships. And the opening keynote, delivered by one of the world’s foremost business futurists and retail industry experts, Doug Stephens, will map out a straightforward, practical approach to improving your business strategy and sales tactics in light of this rapidly transforming technology landscape.

Here’s the bottom line: By the end of 2026, AI will be deeply embedded in how consumers shop, how they expect businesses to respond, and how efficient dealers remain profitable. Some of these changes will feel threatening, but many will create enormous opportunities for those who evolve. Dealer Week is your chance to position your dealership for success in this new reality — to learn from some of the best communicators in business today and to bring home tools you can implement immediately. I hope to see you there.

Regardless if you attend or not, don’t blink. From the time you started reading this until now, AI has already evolved further. The question is, will your dealership evolve with it?