Artificial intelligence is redefining online commerce at an unprecedented speed. A recent leak in ChatGPT’s code reveals a potential integration with Shopify, the well-known e-commerce platform. Technical evidence includes strings like buy_now and shopify_checkout_url, suggesting that it will soon be possible to purchase products directly within a conversation with ChatGPT, without needing to visit a traditional online store.
If officially confirmed, this integration would mark a significant turning point in digital commerce: users would no longer have to leave the chat window to discover, compare, and purchase a product. Everything would happen in real-time, within a fluid dialogue with AI.
A Radical Change in the Shopping Experience
Currently, a typical online purchase involves several steps: searching on Google, browsing product pages, analyzing reviews, adding items to the cart, and finally going through the checkout process. With this new possibility, that journey could be condensed into a single conversation.
For instance, if a user asks, “What running shoes are good for asphalt?”, ChatGPT could suggest several brand options, display prices, reviews, and offer a direct buy button without leaving the chat environment. With just two clicks, the process would be complete.
The End of the Traditional Funnel?
This innovation challenges the classic “conversion funnel,” a structure that has long guided users from interest to purchase through multiple phases. In this new paradigm, discovery, decision, and action occur within the same channel and in seconds.
Additionally, it poses a silent threat to tools and strategies that have dominated digital marketing for the past decade: SEO, social media advertising, and even visually optimized online stores could lose prominence if users become accustomed to shopping through conversations with AI.
Benefits for Consumers and Small Businesses
This conversational approach not only simplifies the consumer’s life but could also democratize access to digital commerce for smaller brands. Unlike traditional marketplaces or paid advertising, where those who invest the most stand out, this integration would allow products with a good price-to-quality ratio to compete on equal terms, as the AI would recommend options based on relevance, not advertising expenditure.
On the other hand, users save time, receive personalized recommendations, and avoid browsing through dozens of pages or manually comparing products.
AI as a Smart Shopping Assistant
If this functionality advances, ChatGPT will assume the role of a personalized shopping assistant, with capabilities such as:
- Filtering products by style, need, or urgency of delivery.
- Resolving inquiries about shipping, returns, or coupons without human intervention.
- Making recommendations based on consumption habits or previous purchases.
- Receiving images and suggesting similar products.
- Executing purchases via voice with assistants like Alexa or Siri.
Technological and Commercial Implications
Beyond individual purchases, this integration represents a natural evolution of the ecosystem of plugins and APIs that OpenAI and Shopify have been developing separately. Microsoft, in turn, recently launched its Copilot Merchant program to integrate similar experiences within its AI ecosystem.
If purchasing within the chat becomes the norm, many platforms may follow suit, ushering in an era of “post-screen commerce”, where the main buying interface is neither a website nor an app, but a conversation.
Conclusion
Although there is currently no official confirmation from OpenAI or Shopify, the technical evidence and current development context suggest that this integration is imminent. If realized, it will not only change the way we shop online but could completely reshape sales strategies, customer service, and digital advertising.
Conversational commerce is no longer science fiction. It is the next logical step in the evolution of e-commerce, driven by AI. And all signs indicate that the future of shopping will be written in a chat.
Source: AI News