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Event recap · Updated Oct 8, 2026

B2B Connect 2026: the six questions to ask any AI product data vendor

B2B Connect is WBR's invite-only executive event for B2B ecommerce leaders, with pre-matched one-to-one meetings between practitioners and technology partners. The 2026 edition ran June 23–25 at the Rancho Bernardo Inn in San Diego. Anglera presented a session on why 25 years of product data promises have failed, and handed the room a checklist for the next pitch.

Anglera at B2B Connect

25 years of broken promises, and the checklist that cuts through the next pitch

PIM vendors, offshore data shops and rules engines all promised clean product data. The session walked through why each fell short, and what a production-grade AI system has to prove before you trust it with your catalog.

Book a follow-up What we presented

Takeaways

  1. 1

    Retrieves and reads unstructured sources. Not just feeds: manufacturer sites, spec PDFs and product images.

  2. 2

    Separates generation from verification. Two distinct steps, not one model guessing and hoping.

  3. 3

    Calibrated confidence with a tunable threshold. You decide where the system escalates to a person.

  4. 4

    Source precedence you control. You decide which source wins when they disagree.

  5. 5

    Corrections update the system. A fix improves every future SKU, not just one cell.

  6. 6

    Full audit trail. Every value traces back to where it came from. If a vendor can't answer 3 and 6 cleanly, they have a demo, not a production system.

Frequently asked questions

Where is B2B Connect held?

The 2025 and 2026 editions were at the Rancho Bernardo Inn in San Diego. WBR lists the 2027 edition for September 13–14, 2027, at the Hyatt Regency Austin.

Is B2B Connect open to everyone?

No. It is invite-only and vetted: practitioners are C-level to director at US manufacturers and distributors, and they take pre-scheduled, mutually matched one-to-one meetings with technology partners.

Is B2B Connect the same as B2B Online?

Both are run by WBR, but B2B Online (Chicago in spring, Atlanta in fall) is an open conference, while B2B Connect is a smaller invite-only meetings event. It was called B2B Online Connect when it ran virtually in 2020.

What is the checklist for evaluating AI product data vendors?

Ask whether it reads unstructured sources, separates generation from verification, exposes tunable confidence thresholds, honors your source precedence, learns from corrections, and keeps a full audit trail.

This is an independent guide written by Anglera. We are not the organizer; for tickets, schedule changes and official policies, go to the official event site.

Sources

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