The story so far
OpenAI is testing a new shopping feature in ChatGPT that shows product info, prices, and ratings during chats.
The system may be tied to Shopify, a popular e-commerce platform, although OpenAI hasn’t confirmed a partnership.
Shopify CEO confirmed excitement about the potential, calling it a “new way of shopping.”
How might this change online shopping experience?
Instead of searching and browsing multiple websites, users can ask ChatGPT for product recommendations.
ChatGPT could act as a search engine, shopping guide, and checkout portal all in one place.
This creates a seamless shopping experience where users don’t need to leave the chat to complete a purchase.
How might user behaviour change?
People may shop directly through the chatbot, skipping traditional websites or search engines.
ChatGPT can offer personalised suggestions based on preferences and previous chats.
For Shopify merchants, this could boost visibility without needing more marketing.
What are the challenges for sellers?
Smaller brands might struggle to get noticed if ChatGPT favors bigger or well-reviewed products.
Brands could lose control over how their products are described, since AI rewrites content in its own way.
Merchants must now optimize content for AI, not just humans.
What might happen to Google?
Google still dominates search, but if people start using ChatGPT for product discovery, it could lose traffic and ad revenue.
Traditional shopping via Google ads and search results may decline.
Click-through rates (CTRs) on ads may fall if users stay inside the chatbot.
What is Google doing about this?
Google is investing in AI upgrades (like Gemini and AI Overviews) to keep up with this shift.
Its massive user data gives it an advantage to personalise ads and train better AI.
Google’s ability to use this data could help it remain competitive in AI-driven commerce.
What other options does OpenAI have to compete against Google?
ChatGPT doesn’t have Google-level user data or control over platforms like browsers or online stores.
Shopify doesn’t collect customer data like Amazon does, limiting its usefulness.
OpenAI has considered building its own browser, and even hiring former Chrome engineers.
It also showed interest in buying Google Chrome if required by law, showing how important a browser is for competition.
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