An update to the API client SLA will provide customers with more flexibility and time to prepare for major version upgrades. The new SLA will cover both the current and the previous major version for two years following the release of a new version. This change addresses the current limitation where only the latest version was covered, which left many customers without SLA support when major versions with breaking changes were introduced. The updated SLA ensures customers have a predictable two-year window to upgrade, reducing the pressure for immediate updates and enabling better planning. This change is expected to improve customer satisfaction by offering clearer coverage and reducing support inquiries.

No-Code Banners feature is now in GA, allowing customers to easily create and manage banners via our Visual Editor without needing to write any code. Previously, banners required coding via a JSON format in the Manual Rule Editor. This feature simplifies the process, enabling users to display banners at the top of search and category results pages for customers using InstantSearch. The banner must be a picture hosted outside of Algolia. This enhancement empowers users to create more visual experiences for customers, improving user experience and increasing conversion opportunities. Click here to learn more.

The new self-service Crawler simplifies data ingestion by providing an intuitive onboarding experience, multiple domain verification methods, and enhanced product and article data extraction. With a no-code configuration option and improved accessibility from the Algolia dashboard, users can easily manage their crawlers without engineering expertise. A new usage-based pricing model also allows for flexibility, making the Crawler accessible to a broader range of users while eliminating the need for annual contracts. These updates streamline the setup process, reduce technical hurdles, and offer greater efficiency for businesses managing large-scale data extraction.

The onboarding process for Shopify users has been revamped with a more streamlined, step-by-step guide. Key setup steps, such as enabling Autocomplete and InstantSearch, are now simplified with clear instructions, helpful visuals, and real-time notifications. This eliminates the need for external documentation, making the process intuitive and reducing the complexity for both new and existing users. The updates ensure that the setup is straightforward, enhancing usability and reducing time to implementation.

The Visual Merchandiser page within Merch Studio has received a new look and feel to offer users a better, smoother user experience. By enhancing this page we hope to empower users to more easily carry out core merchandising activities. The redesign comes with:

• a streamlined and simpler layout to help you focus on essentials
• collapsible side panels to give you control over your view
• a range of other UX improvements to enhance the overall responsiveness of the page

Algolia’s Revenue Analytics feature provides customers with a more comprehensive understanding of how Algolia impacts their business. With this recent release, customers can now (1) access the quick analytics bar in the Dashboard 'Browse' page and (2) select to display five additional revenue metrics when visualizing product tiles:

• Number of items added to cart
• Number of purchases
• Add to cart rate
• Purchase rate
• Revenue

Available in the Visual Merchandiser, Visual Editor, and Browse page. These enhancements empower customers to make data-driven decisions and optimize their search strategies for maximum revenue generation.

Dynamic Re-Ranking (DRR) Advanced is available in Beta for Elevate customers. DRR is a powerful AI feature that optimizes search results for increased relevance. This update addresses long-standing customer requests, including:

• Hourly Refresh: DRR scores are now refreshed hourly, ensuring results reflect the latest user behavior and events (previously updated daily).
• Multi-Facet Support: DRR now supports re-ranking for more than one browsing facet, allowing for more precise control over filtered searches (e.g., category and brand).
• Empty Query Re-Ranking: Unfiltered empty queries will now display the most relevant results based on overall popularity, while filtered queries will prioritize results specific to the applied filters.

By participating in the public beta, Elevate customers can leverage these enhancements to achieve significant improvements in conversion rates. 

Algolia's AI Personalization now offers suggested affinities to guide customers in selecting relevant attributes for their personalization configurations. By analyzing existing attributes and applying strict criteria, Algolia provides recommendations that can help improve the quality of user profiles and enhance personalization outcomes. Suggested affinities can streamline the configuration process and reduce the likelihood of misconfigurations. Customers can still choose their own affinities and conduct A/B testing to further refine their personalization strategies. Click here to learn more.

Algolia's Salesforce B2C Commerce cartridge now allows for the no-code definition of custom indexable product attributes. Previously, integrators had to write custom code to index attributes not explicitly defined by Algolia. With this update, customers can easily define which product attributes to index using the Business Manager UI, reducing setup time and simplifying the indexing process. 

Algolia's Frequently Bought Together (FBT) feature now includes a "Strict" model variant, providing customers with a more precise and controlled recommendation strategy. This variant ensures that only items strictly purchased together are recommended, addressing specific use cases where a more conservative approach is desired.