By Peter Wilmot, chief product officer at Shopsense AI
For years, holiday shopping has been shaped by familiar habits: Google search, retailer websites, gift guides, email blasts, and the occasional TV spot that nudges a shopper into action. Now, that playbook is undergoing its most dramatic shift in more than a decade.
AI search and the rise of agent-driven shopping have changed how people find products and how they expect to buy them – and brands that aren’t preparing for this new reality risk losing both visibility and customer connection.
We’ve crossed a threshold: AI is no longer a novelty added to the consumer journey. AI drives that consumer journey. It’s the New Front Door to Commerce.
The New Front Door to Commerce
More online shoppers are beginning their search today by asking AI. Earlier this week, OpenAI released its shopping research experience. This and other AI shopping tools power interactive experiences answering specific queries like “What are good gifts for a 15-year-old who loves photography?” or “Which skincare products help with dryness in winter?” AI now streamlines tasks that used to take multiple searches, several tabs, and hours of indecision.
AI compresses the funnel. Consumers can see a product on TV, ask an AI to identify it, compare it to alternatives, check price history, and buy it, all without returning to a traditional search engine or retailer homepage.
The impact is measurable: Nearly half of consumers use AI as their preferred discovery tool, especially during high-choice moments like holiday shopping, and the curated answers they receive often determine what they buy before a brand ever has a chance to speak for itself.
That’s a huge unlock for consumers, but a major shift for brands that have relied on search engine marketing or affiliate placements to stay visible during high-stakes buying periods.
McKinsey estimates that agentic commerce could orchestrate up to $1 trillion in U.S. retail revenue by 2030, with global estimates of $3–$5 trillion. The stakes for brands have never been higher.
Forward Momentum
A few factors are accelerating this moment:
- Embedded in daily habits: Consumers don’t need to adopt a new behavior because AI is already embedded in tools they use daily
- Visual and content rich: Shoppers increasingly start with images, video, and creator content rather than text-based searches
- Trusted Recommendations: Over half of consumers say they trust AI to surface product information and recommendations, with numbers climbing even higher for younger demographics
- Cross-platform discovery: AI delivers product suggestions across brands and retailers, offering breadth that single-store ecosystems cannot
When you add in convenience, speed, and personalization, it’s no surprise that traditional browsing is rapidly giving way to AI-first shopping.
How brands are responding
Brands know this shift is happening, but many are still treating AI as an add-on rather than the foundation of the modern wave of commerce. The most common misstep is relying on outdated catalog data or inconsistent product metadata. AI can’t recommend what it can’t understand, and weak product signals result in low visibility.
Some forward-looking brands are taking more comprehensive action:
- Upgrading product data: Investing in structured, detailed, and consistently formatted product data to increase AI-driven visibility
- Making content shoppable: Attaching commerce layers to videos, social posts, and editorial content ensures inspiration can convert into purchase
- Designing agent-friendly sites: Sites must surface full product attributes, collections, and accurate pricing so AI agents can reliably answer shopper queries
How brands can keep up
To thrive in an AI-first market, brands should consider these strategies:
- Rethink loyalty: Prioritize product performance, pricing transparency, and consistent data signals over repeat website visits to stay favored when AI becomes the primary buyer
- Prioritize AI discovery channels: Reallocate portions of search and affiliate budgets toward AI-driven recommendation layers, optimizing product feeds, and testing inventory visibility
- Build for an AI-first journey: Attach a commerce layer across broadcast segments, creator videos, editorial content, and social posts so every moment of inspiration is actionable
Where the industry is headed
AI won’t eliminate retailers, publishers, or brands, but it’s redefining discovery, loyalty, and a customer’s path from intent to purchase. Companies that invest in modernized product catalogs, shoppable content, and agent-driven site architecture will shape the next decade of holiday shopping.
Agentic commerce is no longer a future trend. It’s already here. Brands that adapt will own the next decade; those that wait risk quietly disappearing.
