- Walmart launched AI-powered instant checkout via ChatGPT
- Feature enables Walmart purchases via ChatGPT conversations
- Users can talk to the AI about meals they could prepare, new products, products they need more of.
ChatGPT began helping Walmart shoppers find and purchase items through chat. OpenAI and the retail giant announced that customers can start making purchases through ChatGPT using a new feature called Instant Checkout, completely bypassing the typical website navigation process.
The companies tout instant payment as ideal for those who need to quickly buy things for a meal or notice they’re running low on something like paper napkins. Instead of going through Walmart’s website, they will be able to tell ChatGPT what they need, with the option to ask for suggestions on what products to get, what meal to make, and what ingredients are needed. The AI uses Walmart’s catalog to confirm the order, and the Instant Checkout system, which ChatGPT already uses to enable purchases on Shopify and Instacart, will handle the payment.
This “agent commerce,” as the announcement calls it, is meant to attract people looking to leverage ChatGPT’s prowess to influence Walmart’s own logistics and pricing setup. This could mark a major breakthrough in how AI is changing people’s shopping habits.
“We’re excited to partner with Walmart to make everyday shopping a little easier,” said Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, in a statement. “It’s just one way AI helps people every day as we work together.”
Instant checkout is one avenue through which OpenAI is attempting to make ChatGPT more of an e-commerce utility. It works with Apple Pay, Google Pay and credit cards through Stripe. Until now, however, it was mainly used to place orders with small merchants and digital storefronts. Walmart is by far its largest partner to date.
The partnership also pushes Walmart deeper into the AI arms race against rivals like Amazon and Google. Amazon has many AI tools aimed at improving the shopping experience, from Alexa voice commands to its AI assistant, Rufus. Meanwhile, Google offers AI to not only suggest purchases but also let you try on clothes virtually.
Walmart is already using AI in several capacities, including customer service. Sparky, the in-house AI assistant, helps make product recommendations and tracks inventory to help reduce wait times when people seek help. The ChatGPT integration makes the connection between Walmart data and the customer even shorter. You can tell ChatGPT you’re running low on school snacks, receive a curated list of kid-friendly groceries, and order the batch in seconds.
“For many years now, online shopping experiences have consisted of a search bar and a long list of item answers. That’s about to change,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said in a statement.
“An upcoming, multimedia, personalized and contextual native AI experience. We’re moving toward this nicer, more convenient future with Sparky and through partnerships including this milestone with OpenAI. »
Don’t expect Walmart or other stores to lose their websites and screen-based shopping approach tomorrow. However, if conversational commerce experiments like this prove successful, they could at least join the list of online shopping methods. Conversational shopping portals could become as common as Amazon and Google storefronts, with AI-powered responses built-in.
Follow TechRadar on Google News And add us as your favorite source to get our news, reviews and expert opinions in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can too follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form and receive regular updates from us on WhatsApp Also.
