OpenAI is popping ChatGPT right into a shopping assistant, ushering in a brand new era of “conversational commerce” and directly difficult tech giants like Google, Amazon, and media-backed review sites.
On April 28, OpenAI rolled out a significant shopping update to ChatGPT that offers users:
- Personalized product recommendations
- Side-by-side price comparisons
- Reviews and direct buying links
The feature is live for all users, free, Plus, and even logged-out visitors.
“We’re trying to bring a brand new type of conversational shopping experience into ChatGPT,” said Matt Weaver, OpenAI’s EMEA solutions head.
How it really works
Users can now ask ChatGPT for shopping advice, like “best red t-shirt under $30”, and get visual tiles, retailer options, user reviews, and buy links.
OpenAI says product results are AI-chosen, not ads or sponsored content.
Shopping
We’re experimenting with making shopping simpler and faster to search out, compare, and buy products in ChatGPT.
Improved product results Visual product details, pricing, and reviews Direct links to purchase
Product results are chosen independently and aren’t ads.… pic.twitter.com/PkZwsTxJUj
ChatGPT is already seeing over a billion searches per week. Now it’s competing directly with:
- Google, which dominates search but is losing ground on industrial queries
- Amazon, which launched its own AI shopping assistant
- Publishers, who depend on affiliate links for review-based revenue
Game-changer
ChatGPT goals to collapse the multi-tab shopping journey; research, compare, review, and buy right into a single, chat-driven interface.
It may also learn from users’ preferences, storing past conversations to personalize future recommendations. (Memory features are off within the EU and UK as a result of privacy laws.)
Not just search, but strategy:
With $125B in projected revenue by 2029, OpenAI is exploring affiliate models but says it’s prioritizing quality user experience first.
“It’s trying to grasp how persons are reviewing this, how persons are talking about this,” said Adam Fry, OpenAI’s search product lead.
Online shopping may never look the identical. ChatGPT isn’t any longer only a chatbot; it’s coming for the digital storefronts of its biggest rivals.
