What is agentic commerce?
Agentic commerce is buying activity in which an AI system performs part of the work for a person, potentially including a transaction within authorised limits.
This is a rapidly evolving and highly complex area.
Product discovery, comparison and payment are different stages. A system can assist with one without taking responsibility for the others. Paying within an AI interface is also different from allowing an agent to choose and purchase without further confirmation.
The available experience depends on the platform, merchant, product and market. A general announcement about AI shopping does not establish that a particular customer can complete a particular transaction.
How does an AI shopping agent choose products?
Selection depends on the shopper’s request, information available to the system and the platform’s own rules.
OpenAI says ChatGPT shopping results can draw on product information and the user’s context, and that those product results are selected independently of advertising. Its description concerns ChatGPT rather than every shopping agent. OpenAI’s shopping documentation
A specified brand narrows the task differently from an open request for a product category. Price, availability, delivery and product compatibility can also determine whether an offer meets the request. Accurate information helps a system assess eligibility without guaranteeing selection.
Can customers already buy through AI channels?
Yes, in supported channels and circumstances, but the checkout route varies.
Shopify’s documentation describes ChatGPT as a discovery-focused referrer whose users complete purchases on the merchant’s store. It also describes direct checkout in supported Google, Microsoft and Meta channels when activated. Eligibility and geographical availability differ by channel. Shopify’s agentic-storefront documentation
A product being discoverable does not establish that direct checkout is enabled. Merchant fulfilment, returns and the customer relationship remain relevant after the AI-assisted interaction.
What does agentic commerce change for brand building?
It changes some routes through which shoppers encounter, compare and buy products, while leaving room for existing preferences to shape the request.
Our view of brand building extends beyond marketing to the conscious elevation of every touchpoint through which consumers experience a brand. AI-mediated discovery, purchase and support form part of that broader experience.
The commercial effect depends on how much choice the shopper delegates. An agent instructed to find a named product faces a different task from one asked to choose an acceptable alternative.
Brand information and transactional information therefore answer different needs: what the brand offers and whether it can fulfil the purchase on the requested terms. The balance between them varies by category. There is no established universal investment ratio or guaranteed method for becoming an agent’s preferred brand.
We would be interested to hear from anyone looking to elevate their strategy in agentic commerce.