Paper Number
ECIS2026-2862
Paper Type
SP
Abstract
Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming digital commerce, yet entrepreneurs in this space typically encounter AI as platform-mediated discourse rather than as a working technology. This study examines how entrepreneurs make sense of AI within a digital platform ecosystem prior to adoption by analyzing 3,195 public messages across 385 discussion threads from Shopify, a leading e-commerce platform. Using a computationally assisted approach, we identify three stages of collective sensemaking: 1) exposure, 2) exploration, and 3) evaluation. Our analysis shows that entrepreneurs predominantly frame AI as augmentative, while automation-oriented interpretations are less common. These processes suggest that AI diffusion in platform ecosystems is shaped by interpretive work in which discursive cues, interface behaviors, and peer exchanges guide expectations before adoption occurs. The study contributes to platform ecosystem research by illustrating how actors interpret emerging technologies within a meta-organizational environment and by showing how material-discursive infrastructures support early-stage learning and collective sensemaking.
Recommended Citation
Song, Sumin and Sadreddin, Arman, "Before The Leap: Collective Sensemaking Of Artificial Intelligence In Digital Platform Ecosystems" (2026). ECIS 2026 Proceedings. 13.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/ecis2026/platforms/platforms/13
Before The Leap: Collective Sensemaking Of Artificial Intelligence In Digital Platform Ecosystems
Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming digital commerce, yet entrepreneurs in this space typically encounter AI as platform-mediated discourse rather than as a working technology. This study examines how entrepreneurs make sense of AI within a digital platform ecosystem prior to adoption by analyzing 3,195 public messages across 385 discussion threads from Shopify, a leading e-commerce platform. Using a computationally assisted approach, we identify three stages of collective sensemaking: 1) exposure, 2) exploration, and 3) evaluation. Our analysis shows that entrepreneurs predominantly frame AI as augmentative, while automation-oriented interpretations are less common. These processes suggest that AI diffusion in platform ecosystems is shaped by interpretive work in which discursive cues, interface behaviors, and peer exchanges guide expectations before adoption occurs. The study contributes to platform ecosystem research by illustrating how actors interpret emerging technologies within a meta-organizational environment and by showing how material-discursive infrastructures support early-stage learning and collective sensemaking.
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