Summary:
- Demo‑ready AI at NADA 2026: An overview of Cox Automotive’s AI capabilities available to experience at NADA, spanning demand, inventory, dealmaking, CRM, and fixed operations.
- Assistive and data‑driven: Capabilities are built to help dealership teams act earlier, work more efficiently, and make better decisions using trusted first‑party automotive data.
- Connected retail ecosystem: Solutions work together across the Cox Automotive portfolio to improve efficiency, decision quality, and profitability, without adding operational complexity.
If you’re heading to NADA 2026 with limited time and big decisions to make, this guide is your starting point.
Cox Automotive is bringing AI‑powered innovations to NADA that help dealerships unlock efficiency and profitability across the entire retail operation—from demand and inventory to dealmaking, acquisition, and retention. Backed by the industry’s most powerful insights and the only true omnichannel capability in automotive retail, these solutions are built to work together.
Use this guide to plan your show around AI capabilities available now, so you can focus your time on the demos that matter most, understand how each capability fits into the broader retail ecosystem, and leave NADA with clarity on what to activate next to drive near‑term results.
Marketing
Turning visibility into engagement and engagement into opportunity.
Why it matters: If shoppers don’t find you, or bounce when they do, everything downstream gets harder. Prioritize AI that improves visibility, relevance, and speed on your web and marketplace touchpoints.
What to see at NADA
Dealer.com
Demo Dealer.com to learn how AI improves website performance without requiring a rebuild of your digital foundation. The focus is on practical, AI-driven tools that help shoppers find what they want faster, while reducing the day-to-day burden on dealership teams.
What to pay attention to at the booth:
- AI-driven personalization that adjusts site content, layouts, and offers in real-time based on shopper behavior
- Natural language search that lets shoppers use conversational phrases (e.g., “SUVs with heated seats under $30K”)
- Faster paths to discovery, reducing friction and keeping shoppers engaged
- Automation that improves engagement and conversion from existing traffic without adding manual work
Autotrader
At NADA, Autotrader will focus on how AI helps dealerships capture and convert high-intent demand earlier in the marketplace journey. The demo will show practical ways to reduce friction for shoppers and scale visibility, so marketplace activity translates into measurable opportunities without adding work for your team.
What to pay attention to at the booth:
- Smart Search that lets shoppers describe what they want in plain language instead of rigid filters, so shoppers find relevant vehicles faster and stay engaged
- Intelligent Market Extension automatically places inventory in high-demand regions using first-party data and machine learning
- Scalable demand generation expanding visibility and opportunity without increasing operational effort
Secure your demo: Dealer.com | Autotrader
Back Office
Reducing friction, risk, and time to yes.
Why it matters: Deal speed and quality determine frontend gross, funding time, and fraud exposure. Focus on AI that cleans data, reduces errors, and guides decisions.
What to see at NADA
Deal Central
Prioritize Cox Automotive Deal Central if your goal is to simplify deal execution and get to yes faster across both online and in-store transactions. The focus is on AI-assisted workflows that help teams move deals forward with fewer handoffs and better decisions made in the moment.
What to pay attention to at the booth:
- AI-assisted deal workflows so teams can build and compare deal scenarios in real-time
- Engagement that keeps managers involved without pulling them off the floor
- A complete digital deal jacket that carries the deal from start to finish without rework
- Embedded intelligence helping teams make better decisions early, instead of fixing issues later
Dealertrack
At NADA, Dealertrack will focus on using AI to protect the deal while keeping it moving. The demos show how intelligence and automation work together to reduce risk, eliminate rework, and support faster funding, without adding steps or complexity to the process.
What to pay attention to at the booth:
- AI-supported ID verification that helps identify potential fraud risk early
- Automated data validation reducing errors and preventing rework downstream
- Digital contracting and compliance tools supporting cleaner, more consistent deal execution
- Workflow automation that accelerates funding while tightening controls as volumes fluctuate
Secure your demo: Deal Central | Dealertrack
Inventory & Acquisition
From sourcing to merchandising, smarter inventory decisions at the VIN level.
Why it matters: Inventory performance increasingly depends on how precisely and efficiently each vehicle is managed, from acquisition through pricing and merchandising. AI-driven, VIN-specific insights help dealerships make higher-confidence acquisition decisions, optimize ROI on individual vehicle investments, and move vehicles to market faster. When teams can capture better condition data earlier and apply accurate pricing and merchandising workflows downstream, they spend less time correcting issues later, and more time driving consistent results across the lot.
What to see at NADA
vAuto
Demo vAuto to see how AI and automation support smarter inventory management decisions, from appraisal through merchandising. The demos highlight how VIN-specific insights and live market data help teams act with greater confidence and consistency while reducing manual work.
What to pay attention to at the booth:
- VIN-specific appraising and pricing recommendations powered by AI and patented live market data
- AI-driven competitive sets that reflect real market dynamics using smarter radius and odometer logic plus realtime consumer shopping behavior
- AI-powered merchandising that streamlines photo processing, classification, and presentation
- Faster time to market through automation that reduces manual steps and improves accuracy
Kelley Blue Book® Instant Cash Offer
At NADA, Kelley Blue Book® Instant Cash Offer will show you how AI supports earlier, more consistent decisions at the front end of the inventory lifecycle. The focus is on reducing variability in condition capture and appraisal while giving dealerships more control over how and when they scale acquisition.
What to pay attention to at the booth:
- Photo-based damage detection capturing vehicle condition earlier and with greater consistency
- Dynamic condition flows supporting more confident appraisals before vehicles hit the lot
- Offer Accelerator expanding sourcing by extending trusted KBB valuations through Autotrader and KBB.com
- Scalable acquisition control that increases opportunity without adding staff or operational complexity
Secure your demo: vAuto | KBB ICO
Fixed Ops
Protect and grow your most dependable profit center.
Why it matters: Your most reliable profit center benefits quickly from assistive AI for better calls, smarter recommendations, and automated recapture of declined services.
What to see at NADA
Xtime
Xtime will demonstrate how AI and automation improve consistency, retention, and revenue across fixed operations. The demo focuses on practical ways to support advisors, set clearer expectations with customers, and recover revenue, without adding manual work to already busy service teams.
What to pay attention to at the booth:
- AI-assisted service interactions that help set clearer expectations from the start
- Data-backed service recommendations building customer trust and support higher RO value
- Automation for declined services to recapture missed revenue without manual follow-up
- More consistent service execution that supports retention and long-term profitability
Secure your demo: Xtime
Sales
Acting on real shopper intent.
Why it matters: Performance increasingly depends on how effectively teams respond to genuine buyer intent. AI-driven CRM and engagement tools help dealerships identify in-market shoppers earlier, stay responsive around the clock, and deliver more relevant communications without increasing manual workload. When engagement is timely and personalized, teams can focus their effort where it matters most, on customers who are most likely to buy.
What to see at NADA
VinSolutions
VinSolutions will showcase how AI and automation enhance every step of the car buying journey, from initial browsing through appointment scheduling and follow-up. The demo will focus on helping teams stay responsive, identifying high-intent shoppers earlier, and communicating more effectively without adding pressure or complexity to daily workflows.
What to pay attention to at the booth:
- 24/7 automated text and email engagement that answers questions and books appointments when staff aren’t available
- Predictive Insights from exclusive shopper signals to identify consumers significantly more likely to buy
- GenAI-powered communications generating personalized, ready-to-send messages for faster, more consistent follow-up
- AI-supported prioritization to help teams focus effort on high-intent shoppers
Secure your demo: VinSolutions
Walk the NADA Show Floor with Confidence
Cox Automotive is aligned around assistive, data-grounded AI, the kind that helps your team move faster, decide smarter, and show up stronger. This guide gives you a direct line to the demos you can’t miss at NADA 2026. Unlock efficiency and profitability across your entire retail operation.
