Last week, OpenAI announced a series of updates to ChatGPT’s shopping experience, with the goal to establish it as a first point of call for online shoppers. Since the generative AI conversation reached a peak, users and industry insiders alike have been asking how the tech will impact the shopping journey. Could the ‘ChatGPT of shopping’ be ChatGPT itself?
With the updates, when ChatGPT users search for fashion, beauty, home goods or electronics, the platform will provide personalised recommendations, visual product details, pricing comparisons across retailers, and reviews. There’ll also be direct links to purchase from merchant websites from the ChatGPT interface. As of now, there are no ads, and it’s not pay to play, according to OpenAI. Product recommendations are based on factors such as ‘relevance to user intent’, and are not sponsored placement, says OpenAI spokesperson Leah Anise.
Finding items relevant to ourselves and our style is an increasingly challenging feat. Amidst algorithms programmed to show us items we’ve indicated we like (versus new products we might find we enjoy) and the uptick in pay-to-play opportunities for brands, shopping and discovery feel harder than ever. AI proponents think that the tech can be the solution, as AI agents and models can comb the internet for items far faster and more thoroughly than any human scrolling e-commerce and social feeds. But is solving for tech hurdles with more tech the answer – particularly given AI’s trust problem? Only 24 per cent of US adults think AI will likely benefit them personally, according to a recent Pew Research study. And only 23 per cent say they interact with AI daily.
ChatGPT is doing what many tech companies – including Google – have been working towards with AI-enhanced shopping. Last October, Google Shopping released a suite of updates enabled by generative AI, including personalised recommendations and the ability to compare the same products across retailers. But the query still formatted like a regular Google search. Companies from Daydream and SpangleAI to Sociate and OneOff are also working to make online discovery easier with AI.
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ChatGPT launches new shopping features
OpenAI has announced updates to the shopping experience on its generative AI platform ChatGPT, recommending products and where to buy them. Is this the future of online shopping?
Experts contend that the ChatGPT move represents a significant step forward for not just AI-enabled shopping, but e-commerce. “ChatGPT represents a more radical shift,” says Adrien Menard, CEO of SEO platform Botify. “It’s conversational from the ground up,” he says, adding that the shift away from SEO-driven headlines is key to delivering results consumers feel are more useful. It’s also collapsing the funnel, he adds, by surfacing comparisons, reviews, and pricing in a single step. “If a tool helps me find what I want faster — with fewer tabs, fewer ads, and smarter recommendations — I’ll keep using it,” he says. Will everyone?
New habits die hard?
With over 1 billion searches a week, according to OpenAI, ChatGPT is fast becoming a habit. It’s used by over a quarter of the population (excluding China), per GWI. As more consumers integrate the tool into their daily lives, using it to shop could become second nature. “For many consumers, especially Gen Z and Gen Alpha, starting a shopping journey with a chatbot [already] feels more intuitive than opening a browser tab,” Menard says.
Plus, this funnel collapse is key, says Daniel Carles, adjunct professor of digital marketing and e-commerce at Istituto Marangoni, who argues that ChatGPT is already the go-to for many shoppers. “It collapses the messy, decision-fatiguing shopping funnel into a simple conversation,” he says. “[It’s] an AI assistant that doesn’t upsell or shove sponsored listings down your throat, but filters billions of data points into one trusted answer.”
