Walmart, OpenAI partner for purchases in ChatGPT

As part of a larger partnership with OpenAI, Walmart on Tuesday announced customers will soon be able to make purchases within ChatGPT using the new Instant Checkout feature.

The ChatGPT function debuted with Etsy and Shopify in September. It allows customers to purchase from retailers who are opted into Instant Checkout, which currently allows for single-item purchases and plans to expand to multi-item carts. Walmart said this is the beginning of a partnership with OpenAI that will create AI-first shopping experiences, per a post from the retailer.

“For many years now, eCommerce shopping experiences have consisted of a search bar and a long list of item responses,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said in a statement. “That is about to change. There is a native AI experience coming that is multi-media, personalized and contextual. We are running towards that more enjoyable and convenient future with Sparky and through partnerships including this important step with OpenAI.”

The mass retailer noted that this partnership is meant to move past the traditional e-commerce experience, with AI proactively learning and predicting customers’ needs.

The announcement builds on Walmart’s news in September that it would develop a customized AI certification program with OpenAI for the retailer’s U.S. frontline and office-based employees.

Walmart has been bullish on agentic AI and in July announced a new company framework centered around four “super agents.” Those include: the customer-facing Sparky agent; the partner agent Marty for suppliers, sellers and advertisers; a store associate agent; and an agent for its tech developers.

The news was part of an effort to streamline and centralize AI usage across the company after years of rapid tech adoption.

Shoppers are increasingly changing the way they search for products, now using more complex search queries within AI chat platforms. With the debut of Instant Checkout, OpenAI noted it would consider several factors — including the enablement of Instant Checkout — when ranking merchants that sell the same product. Merchants pay a fee on purchases via Instant Checkout, though shoppers can use the service at no additional cost.