"There is nothing artificial about artificial intelligence. It’s made by humans, it’s deployed by humans, it’s used by humans, and it’s governed by humans."

—Fei-Fei Li, Computer Scientist

AI has settled into dealership life the same way CRMs, digital retail tools, and online pricing once did. Quietly at first, then everywhere at once.

Reynolds & Reynolds’ State of AI in Automotive Retail Q1 2026 study reveals how teams across retail automotive are using AI today and where it’s already pulling weight.

57% of dealership staff are using AI. 70% of executives are using it. And according to CDK Global's AI at the Dealership study released earlier this month, nearly 40% of dealers are already using AI in some capacity (with another 22% actively planning AI investments through the new year).

The competitive dynamics are shifting. Dealerships responding to leads in 3 minutes versus 30 minutes. Teams listing more inventory faster. And according to industry reports, the focus is on customer communications, workflow support, chatbots, and predictive analytics as stores streamline operations.

Time compression creates a competitive advantage. The question is whether you're capturing it where your customers already expect it.

1. Audit the Time Sucks
Track how long your team spends on repair orders, vehicle descriptions, reporting, and lead follow-up. These are where dealers are seeing the biggest time savings.

2. Pick One High-Impact Area
Start with the task that eats the most time or directly impacts customer response speed. Lead follow-up and scheduling are popular first wins.

3. Measure Before and After
Document your baseline times. Run AI tools for 30 days. Compare. The data will tell you if it's working.

4. Ask Your Customers
61% of dealers think customers prefer AI for certain interactions. Survey your customers to find out what they actually want—you might be surprised.

5. Get Your Team Comfortable
90% of dealers feel confident they can learn new AI tools. Start small, train thoroughly, and expand as comfort grows.

If you saw ChatGPT deploying ads from a mile away, go ahead and take a victory lap. Because you called it.

OpenAI just confirmed it will begin testing ads inside ChatGPT for free and Go users.

For dealers, the bigger issue isn’t buying ads yet. It’s being visible.

When shoppers ask ChatGPT questions like “What’s a good family SUV?” or “What should I pay for a used Silverado?” the system pulls from whatever info it can clearly understand and trust. Dealers get mentioned when their pricing, inventory, and policies are easy for AI to interpret and compare.

That means clear pricing. Real explanations of fees. Inventory descriptions that actually explain condition, packages, mileage, and use cases. Consistency matters. Your website, listings, reviews, and answers all need to line up.

Shoppers don’t start with a dealership name. They start with a problem they’re trying to solve.

Dealers who write for those questions get pulled into the conversation earlier.

Every team eventually hits the same moment: everyone agrees information matters, but no one agrees on where it should live, how it should move, or who should own it. Reports get pulled twice. Updates get missed. Decisions lag behind reality.

This prompt is designed for that moment. It helps a group step back, look at the landscape of options, and figure out how data should be gathered, interpreted, and shared before anyone starts wiring tools together.

If your AI is answering leads but your close rates and CSI are not moving, you’ve got a handoff problem.

Dealer Principal at Sir Walter Chevrolet in Raleigh, Matt Birkhead, shares how his store uses AI for speed, keeps humans for trust, and runs one follow-up funnel for both remote and showroom buyers so nobody falls through the cracks.

Catch their must-know tactics here.

It’s getting harder and harder to know what’s real these days. Stay vigilant, Friend.