ChatGPT can now shop for you. On Friday, OpenAI launched a new wallet feature that lets its agents, called dots, help you decide what to buy and then complete the purchase on your behalf. The option will initially be available to a limited number of U.S. ChatGPT Pro subscribers, ages 18 and up, with a U.S.-issued Visa, Mastercard, or American Express.
OpenAI says that users are fully in control of the purchases, as they’re able to review the items, the total, and the payment card that will be used to complete the transaction before the checkout occurs. In addition, users will approve the purchases directly with a security check like Face ID or a fingerprint, which creates a record of their transaction.
The addition comes as consumer-facing AI tools are working to find the right product-market fit, in terms of how they can help people be more efficient as they complete various tasks. While companies like DoorDash and Uber have so far reported low numbers of orders placed by AI agents, Meta’s Muse, which now has over 10 million users, has seen AI-assisted shopping become a top activity on its app.
Other personal AI agents, like Instinct, also support making purchases on users’ behalf.
It’s no surprise, then, that OpenAI would want to enter this space more with an agentic shopping feature of its own.
To get started, ChatGPT subscribers add their eligible payment cards to the new ChatGPT Wallet, then ask their dot to help with a purchase. (This setup is a one-time thing; users don’t have to re-enter their payment information every time they buy.) When it’s time to transact, ChatGPT’s Wallet charges the selected card using a payment token, which is a substitute for the user’s actual card details, so that information isn’t shared with either the dot or the merchant.
The merchant will automatically receive what it needs to fulfill the order from the dot, like the shipping address and contact information, OpenAI says. The company notes that customers who shop via their dots will still be able to earn their credit card rewards and be able to take advantage of protections that typically come with cards, like being able to dispute transactions.
The limited availability at launch will allow OpenAI to test and improve the feature and its capabilities before rolling it out more broadly. In the future, the company plans to offer users more control over the feature by allowing them to set spending limits or configure other parameters around purchase categories or time periods, so they can pre-approve purchases that their agent can then handle more autonomously.
It also aims to make the agentic shopping feature an option at a broader number of supported retailers. This could be a challenge in some areas, where retailers are blocking AI agents from using their site; on the shopping front, the largest retailer to ban AI agents is Amazon, as it aims to steer users to its own AI agent, Alexa, instead.
To help retailers adapt to agentic commerce, OpenAI also published a Commerce Partner Playbook that offers tools and guidance to sites that want to support customers using agents.
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