Shopping with AI assistants

Tablet suggesting products alongside physical items

By Patricia Jarmek E-commerce 8 October 2026

7 min read

The customer journey no longer has to begin in an online store

Imagine someone looking for an office chair.

Instead of opening multiple online stores, comparing specifications and reading reviews, they ask an AI assistant:

“I need an ergonomic office chair under €300 for eight hours of daily use, with delivery to Slovenia. Which options offer the best value?”

The assistant can compare features, prices, reviews and availability, then suggest products that fit the requirements.

The customer can refine the request, change the budget or ask for a more detailed comparison.

A part of the shopping journey that previously happened across several websites can now take place within one conversation.

For ecommerce businesses, this raises an important question:

How can merchants make sure AI systems understand their products and present them to relevant buyers?

What is agentic commerce?

Agentic commerce describes a model of digital shopping in which AI agents participate in different stages of the purchasing process.

There are three important levels.

An AI shopping adviser helps customers research and compare products.

An AI shopping assistant may prepare a cart, identify the correct product variant or simplify the transition to checkout.

An AI purchasing agent may, where supported and appropriately authorized, carry out transaction steps on the customer's behalf.

The third level requires much more than a language model.

It depends on reliable product data, merchant integrations, inventory verification, payment authorization and clear responsibility for the transaction.

These foundations are developing rapidly, but capabilities and availability vary between platforms and markets.

What actually changed in 2026?

On 24 March 2026, OpenAI introduced improved product discovery and comparison in ChatGPT.

The company also adjusted its approach to checkout.

Its initial Instant Checkout experience had not provided the desired flexibility, so the company shifted its focus toward product discovery while allowing merchants to use their own checkout experiences. [1]

That distinction matters.

The commercial opportunity is not limited to completing a purchase inside an AI conversation.

It also involves helping the assistant identify relevant products and present accurate information before the customer makes a decision.

Meanwhile, Google has been developing the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), an open standard designed to connect AI shopping experiences with merchants and their commerce systems.

Google's documentation describes different integration options for AI Mode and Gemini while keeping merchants responsible for their sales and customer relationships. [3]

Agentic payments are also moving beyond controlled demonstrations.

On 2 July 2026, Visa announced live AI-agent transactions at participating European merchants, carried out within parameters defined by cardholders. [5]

However, this does not mean that every consumer or merchant in Europe can already use all forms of AI purchasing.

Product data is becoming a competitive asset

Traditional ecommerce product pages are designed primarily to help human visitors make purchasing decisions.

In AI-assisted shopping, product information also needs to be understandable to systems that compare options and make recommendations.

Consider a customer searching for running shoes in a specific size, suitable for road running and within a defined budget.

A description such as “premium quality for demanding customers” provides very little useful information.

More valuable details include size, materials, intended use, compatibility where relevant, available variants, price, inventory and shipping.

OpenAI's product-feed documentation emphasizes structured catalog information, stable product identifiers and accurate pricing and availability. [2]

This does not guarantee that a product will be recommended.

It does provide a better foundation for accurate product understanding.

AI commerce is not simply another version of SEO

SEO helps search engines discover, index and understand web content.

AI commerce may also depend on structured product catalogs, feeds, APIs and real-time availability data.

A well-written product page and a well-maintained catalog therefore need to work together.

A store might have excellent product descriptions but outdated inventory data in its feed.

Another might maintain perfect structured data while offering a confusing checkout experience.

Neither situation is ideal.

AI discoverability is not a replacement for a good online store. It partly depends on one.

What does this mean for WooCommerce and smaller merchants?

Shopify expanded Agentic Storefronts and Shopify Catalog in 2026, enabling merchants to connect product information to several AI shopping channels. Eligibility and checkout functionality differ by platform and market. [4]

But this does not mean that every WooCommerce merchant should immediately migrate.

The more useful first step is to audit the existing product catalog and shopping experience.

Are product titles specific and accurate?

Do descriptions explain meaningful differences between products?

Are prices, variants and inventory synchronized?

Are shipping and return policies clear?

Can structured product data be exported and updated reliably?

Does checkout work smoothly on mobile devices?

Once these foundations are in place, merchants can evaluate which AI integrations are commercially relevant.

Changing platforms without a clear business case may create more cost than value.

What happens to the merchant–customer relationship?

If product discovery happens inside an AI assistant, the merchant may have less control over the beginning of the customer journey.

The shopper may never see the homepage, promotional banners or carefully designed category navigation.

Instead, they may see a shortlist of recommended products.

That makes brand differentiation, accurate information and a trustworthy offer more important.

It also creates a need for realistic expectations.

AI recommendations are not guaranteed to identify the objectively best product. They depend on the customer's request, available information and the rules of the platform.

Customers should still be able to verify the merchant, total price and purchase conditions before confirming an order.

Measuring AI-assisted commerce

Being recommended by an AI assistant may be useful, but visibility alone is not a business outcome.

Merchants should evaluate whether product information is presented correctly, whether AI sources generate measurable traffic, how that traffic converts and whether the resulting orders are profitable.

Attribution will remain challenging.

A customer may use an AI assistant during research and complete the purchase later through another channel.

That influence may not be visible in standard analytics.

Avoid attributing every sales increase to AI without supporting evidence.

Where should businesses start?

For most small and medium-sized merchants, the first priority is not developing a proprietary AI shopping agent.

It is improving product data.

Clear descriptions, reliable structured information, accurate prices, understandable policies and a smooth checkout create value regardless of which AI shopping platforms become dominant.

Only then should businesses evaluate deeper integrations and new sales channels.

The next generation of ecommerce may begin outside the online store. But the quality of the store will still matter when a customer decides to buy.

Frequently asked questions

What is agentic commerce?

Agentic commerce is a form of digital shopping in which AI agents help discover, compare and select products and, where supported and authorized, carry out purchasing steps.

Can AI agents already purchase products?

Some supported integrations allow AI agents to perform transaction steps with appropriate user authorization. Availability remains limited and varies by market and platform.

Does an online store need special AI optimization?

Accurate descriptions, structured product data, current prices, inventory information and reliable feeds can improve how products are understood and represented.

Do WooCommerce merchants need to migrate to Shopify?

No. Merchants should first assess their existing infrastructure, available integrations and commercial requirements.

Will AI assistants replace online stores?

There is not enough evidence to support that conclusion. AI is changing discovery, comparison and some transaction processes, while merchants remain responsible for selling and fulfilling orders.