ChatGPT Adds Visual Shopping, Expands Agentic Commerce Protocol
7
What is the Viqus Verdict?
We evaluate each news story based on its real impact versus its media hype to offer a clear and objective perspective.
AI Analysis:
Significant media buzz around a practical, consumer-facing expansion of ChatGPT’s capabilities. While visually driven product discovery is a key element of AI-native commerce, the rollout is phased, focused on discovery – a strategic bet on a longer-term trend rather than a transformative shift in immediate consumer behavior.
Article Summary
OpenAI has integrated visual shopping capabilities into ChatGPT, allowing users to explore products through richer, more immersive experiences. The rollout leverages the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP), initially designed to connect merchants with consumers seeking information. Users can now describe desired products, refine searches in conversation, and quickly compare options side-by-side, supported by visuals. This moves beyond simple product descriptions to a true shopping assistant. OpenAI is expanding the ACP to facilitate this, integrating product feeds and promotions directly from merchants, including major retailers like Walmart, Target, Sephora, Nordstrom, Lowe’s, Best Buy, The Home Depot, and Wayfair. A core element is supporting multiple delivery paths—including via existing platforms like Shopify, Salesforce and Stripe – to ensure merchants can participate with their established systems. This expansion represents a significant step towards a more transactional AI, addressing the critical need for seamless conversion. OpenAI is prioritizing product discovery initially, recognizing the challenges of instant purchase, and allows merchants to continue using their own checkout experiences. This approach is scalable, designed for AI shopping at a large scale.Key Points
- ChatGPT now supports visual shopping experiences, allowing users to browse and compare products directly within the chat interface.
- OpenAI is expanding the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP) to facilitate this new functionality, integrating directly with major retailers.
- Merchants can leverage existing platforms like Shopify and Salesforce to participate in this AI-powered commerce experience.

