Wine is one of the most culturally rich, passionately crafted products we consume. Yet for so many, the experience of buying it often feels uninspiring, even alienating. You wouldn’t walk into a restaurant and let someone dictate your meal without input, yet many people settle for the same bottle week after week, or stare blankly at supermarket shelves unsure what to pick. In fact, 61% of people feel overwhelmed or confused buying wine at the supermarket and 42% choose by price alone. Why? Because wine, for all its beauty and complexity, remains difficult to navigate.
The wine industry is one of the oldest in the world, with the earliest evidence of winemaking dating back to around 6,000 BCE in Georgia. It is steeped in history, heritage and tradition. Yet I believe it is forward-looking technologies which will ensure the world of wine stays relevant. AI has the power to put wine drinkers back in control, guiding choices, enhancing discovery, and revolutionising how we interact with wine at every step of the journey.
The Problem: Paralysis of Choice and Lack of Personalisation
The average consumer is faced with thousands of bottles and very little help. Supermarket aisles offer a limited, often generic selection. Online wine retailers may offer more variety, but rarely the confidence or clarity to choose. The wine world is vast, yet most of us only ever scratch the surface. That dissatisfaction with the status quo is what sparked our desire to build a better experience.
A New Kind of Wine Experience
For those fortunate enough to have a local wine shop with an expert sommelier or team, they will know the joy of building a relationship with someone who knows your preferences, your past purchases, and your openness to something new. But only a small percentage of the population has access to that. This is where AI (in our case, GrapevineAI) can play a huge role.
By embedding AI into the wine-buying process, it’s like giving everyone access to that wonderful, knowledgeable and accessible local sommelier. It empowers the wine-curious to explore, discover and uncover new favourites.
AI has the ability to not just to recommend wines, but to truly learn, building a nuanced understanding of what people enjoy from varietals to regions, price points, even how adventurous that person is. It can remember, adapt, and refine suggestions with every order, every rating, every sip. It takes out the guesswork, instead taking consumers on a journey discovery. Through AI, brilliant bottles that never make it to supermarket shelves can be propelled to the surface, from small-batch vineyards and passionate producers; wines with character, provenance, and care.
Why AI Matters
The role of AI here isn’t to replace human expertise. It’s to democratise it. To help people navigate a world that, until now, often felt reserved for those “in the know.” With the right data and design, AI can build relationships at scale, offering everyone the equivalent of a trusted wine expert who listens, learns, and grows with them. It’s the modern and accessible version of walking into a wine shop and asking, “What should I try next.
For the Discerning (and the Curious)
At The Wine Engine, we’re not here to try and convert everyone into a wine geek, or even to encourage people to drink more wine. But for those with a little curiosity and a desire to explore, we believe AI opens up a world of possibility. Wine lovers don’t need deep knowledge, just a sense of taste, and then AI can do the rest.
And if you’re happy drinking the same bottle on repeat? That’s fine, too. For those who want more – more discovery, more variety, more stories in every glass – AI can be the bridge between the everyday and the exceptional.
Because life’s too short for average wine.
About Matt Ovenden:
Eight years after founding Borrow A Boat, Matt Ovenden is pursuing a new venture in the wine industry with The Wine Engine. Seeing striking parallels between his former industry and his new focus: “There are definitely similarities between the boating industry and the wine industry” explains Matt. “Both are very large and mature, but both are playing catch up when it comes to embracing the latest technologies and modern approaches for engaging audiences. To bring people back to wine, it needs embrace a technology-backed approach to engage consumers and revitalise the category. It’s about simplifying the experience for consumers, championing quality over quantity, and reshaping how wine stories are told to encourage category growth.”
Launched in 2025, The Wine Engine is a new subscription and wine buying platform, backed by OpenAI and with the purpose of breaking down barriers to the world of wine.
