In a move that is set to revolutionise the online shopping experience, OpenAI has teamed up with Shopify and Etsy to bring instant checkout shopping directly into ChatGPT.

It’s one of the biggest shifts we’ve seen in digital shopping since the invention of the “Buy Now” button.

The new Instant Checkout feature has been built on the newly unveiled Agentic Commerce Protocol, co-developed with Stripe.

And while it’s only live in the U.S. (for now), it will be here soon, and it’s a crystal-clear sign of what’s coming next — especially for Australian e-commerce brands.

So, how does it work?

Until now, ChatGPT has been a brilliant tool for research, conversation, and content, but it wasn’t transactional.

That’s now changed.

When users ask ChatGPT for product recommendations, like “best running shoes under $200” or “unique gifts for a woman who loves travel and going to the gym”, the chatbot will now return real-time Shopify and Etsy product listings, complete with images, prices, and seller details, and if Instant Checkout is supported, you can buy directly right there in the chat.

No need to click through to a store. No waiting for pages to load. No decision fatigue from endless tabs.

Payment, shipping, and order details are handled securely behind the scenes while merchants keep full control of fulfilment and support. You can think of it like a digital personal shopper who can also finalise your order.

Why this is a game changer

The integration of Shopify into ChatGPT is more than a clever partnership; it represents a paradigm shift in consumer behaviour.

Where once search engines ruled product discovery, now we’re seeing AI chat interfaces absorb that function and blend it seamlessly with purchase.

This means:

• No more separate discovery phase and purchase phase – it’s a single step
• No more ad funnels, abandoned carts or bounce rates
• E-commerce UX becomes conversational, not visual.

The buyer journey is compressed into a single query. And if your product shows up in that short list? You’ve already won.

What brands should be thinking about now

We see this as one of the most important shifts in the future of e-commerce.

Here’s why, and what brands need to know

First movers will win

Brands with clean, structured, AI-readable product data (particularly Shopify merchants) will have a huge advantage.

Your product feed becomes your first impression

Forget your homepage. The metadata behind your products (image quality, tags, pricing, titles, reviews) will define whether ChatGPT recommends or skips your brand.

Instant checkout removes friction

No more clicking off, loading, getting distracted. This format eliminates the drop-off points we’ve long battled in e-commerce funnels.

Search will continue to evolve

If your current digital strategy doesn’t consider how people ask questions, you’re already behind. Voice search, AI prompts, and conversational commerce are rapidly becoming the new norm.

Your product feed needs to align with how people ask questions, or you won’t show up, regardless of how good your product is. 

Here are a few tips when it comes to optimising for search:

• AI-readable beats eye-catching: Your product descriptions, attributes, and pricing structures need to make sense to a machine.
• Discovery ≠ search anymore: This is less about searching on Google, and more about asking “what do you recommend?” AI agents will drive traffic based on relevance and intent — not just search ranking.

So, what steps should brands take next?

If you’re in e-commerce, especially on Shopify, now’s the time to audit your product feed, optimise your structured data, and start exploring AI-integrated commerce strategies.

And with over 700 million people using ChatGPT weekly, product discovery via AI isn’t just coming; it’s already here.

While the feature is yet to come to Australia, we’ll be watching closely and prepping clients for what’s next.

Need Help?

Whether it’s helping to future-proof your marketing strategy, your creative, or your website, we help ambitious brands turn complexity into clarity and clicks into conversions. You can view some of our recent projects here.

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