OpenAI’s ChatGPT Shopping Assistant Curates Product Options for Users: Here’s How

In Focus

• OpenAI has added a Shopping Research tool to ChatGPT
• The new tool allows users to find items using simple descriptions
• ChatGPT activates the tool automatically when a user enters a shopping-related prompt

OpenAI has added a tool called “Shopping Research” to ChatGPT. OpenAI says the ChatGPT shopping assistant allows users to find items by describing what they want. OpenAI is rolling out the update to all ChatGPT subscribers, including those on the free, Pro, Plus, and Go plans.

How Does the ChatGPT Shopping Tool Work?

OpenAI’s shopping tool works across mobile, web, and desktop interfaces. It comes with a range of features designed to make online shopping seamless for users. The ChatGPT tool for product research aims to reduce the need to manually compare multiple sites by delivering curated options.

Instead, they can use simple descriptions like ‘I need a gift for my four-year old niece who loves art,’ or ‘help me choose between these three bikes,’ and the shopping assistant generates a useful guide to help them decide.

According to OpenAI, the shopping research tool “performs especially well in detail-heavy categories like electronics, beauty, home and garden, kitchen and appliances, and sports and outdoor.”

A quick highlight of the ChatGPT shopping tool main features:

• An intuitive visual interface to support product discovery
• Supports conversational formats
• Offers users the option to clarify what they need
• Allows users to generate a list of the items they want
• Users have the option to like displayed items or ignore them

OpenAI introduces ChatGPT’s new shopping research feature months after it added an agentic shopping system called Instant Checkout to the chatbot. The shopping agent allows U.S. users to shop on Shopify and Etsy without leaving chats.

How to Access the ChatGPT Shopping Research Tool

ChatGPT will activate the “Shopping Research” tool automatically when a user asks a shopping-related question. However, users can access the tool by clicking the + icon below the prompt box to access the menu.

Users can activate the feature by selecting the “Shopping Research” option.

OpenAI’s shopping research tool enters the market at a time when AI firms are racing to win online buyers. Recently, Google added new shopping features to the Gemini app and AI Mode in Search to make shopping smarter.

Perplexity AI is reportedly introducing a free agentic shopping tool called “Buy With Pro” to detect customer intent and personalize shopping results.

Refining Product Search With the ChatGPT Shopping Tool

For effective product discovery, users need to make their prompts as detailed as possible. After entering a prompt, ChatGPT generates a few questions for users to refine the search, analyses user responses, and generates a list of products.

Users can check the “interested” or “not interested” buttons on each displayed product. The chatbot discards products that a user is not interested in and presents a visual list of the products they like.

The visual list outlines basic information about a product, image, and a direct link to the e-commerce website.