Costco has added to its board of directors Kenneth Denman, most recently president and CEO of artificial-intelligence startup Emotient, which was acquired by Apple last year.
Costco has added to its board of directors Kenneth Denman, most recently president and CEO of artificial-intelligence startup Emotient, which was acquired by Apple last year.
Emotient created an artificial-intelligence-based platform for measuring facial expressions to predict emotions. The technology was used primarily by advertisers to help assess viewer reactions to ads, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Denman was also CEO of Openwave Systems (since renamed Unwired Planet) and iPass, and is a board member at several tech companies, according to Costco’s news release.
Denman’s tech background may be a signal that the Issaquah-based warehouse giant is looking to up its digital game.
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Costco in recent quarters has defended its tortoise-not-hare approach toward online shopping, saying its main focus was getting shoppers into its brick-and-mortar stores.
The warehouse giant’s online sales still only make up about 4 percent of its revenue, the company said in its latest quarterly earnings conference call.
But that percentage is growing, and the company has in recent months made searches on its website easier and taken other steps to improve its online presence.
Costco chairman Jeff Brotman said in a statement that Denman is “widely recognized as a pioneer and leader in technology. He brings substantial experience as a seasoned entrepreneur and chief executive and as a board member of prominent companies.”