Shopify and Etsy pop as OpenAI brings instant checkout to ChatGPT
Shares of the e-commerce companies jumped after OpenAI said ChatGPT users can now turn searches into instant purchases.
Shopping just got a little more futuristic.
OpenAI said Monday that US ChatGPT Plus, Pro, and Free users can now buy directly from Etsy sellers without ever leaving the chat. OpenAI said the feature would soon be available from over a million Shopify merchants as well. Shares of Etsy surged 13%, while Shopify climbed 6%.
The feature runs on OpenAI’s new Agentic Commerce Protocol, which was codeveloped with fintech firm Stripe and is designed to let AI agents, shoppers, and businesses coordinate purchases securely.
How it works: users can prompt ChatGPT with requests like “best running shoes under $100” and the bot will surface organic product results. If the seller has Instant Checkout enabled, shoppers can make a single-product purchase by tapping “buy” and completing the order right inside ChatGPT.
Results aren’t sponsored, though merchants do pay a small fee per transaction. Currently, the feature only supports single-item purchases.
For sellers, it’s a chance to reach millions of ChatGPT users and will soon include popular brands like Glossier, SKIMS, and Spanx. For shoppers, it’s a seemingly frictionless buying experience and another step in OpenAI’s push to make ChatGPT more than a Q&A tool.
Etsy and Shopify shares are both up about 38% year to date.
