OpenAI retail collaborations are reshaping ecommerce by connecting major platforms like Walmart, Etsy, Shopify, and Salesforce to enable seamless AI-powered shopping experiences.
The battle for the future of e-commerce is no longer about having the best website it’s about being present in the right conversation.
As it turns out, there’s a clear frontrunner.
With 65% of AI-assisted shoppers choosing ChatGPT, it’s no surprise that a surge of OpenAI retail collaborations is following suit, as giants from Walmart to Salesforce bet big that the future of sales lies within the world’s most popular chatbot.
Walmart Joins OpenAI to Build AI-First Shopping Experiences
Adobe for Business"85% of AI shoppers report an improved experience, with 73% using it as their primary research tool and 83% more likely to use it for complex purchases."
Walmart announced this week that it is partnering with OpenAI to create AI-first shopping experiences. The collaboration will enable customers and Sam’s Club members to shop directly through ChatGPT using Instant Checkout.
This move signals Walmart’s push toward agentic commerce—where AI learns, plans, and predicts customer needs. The retailer aims to simplify shopping by allowing users to chat, discover, and purchase without leaving the conversation.
Walmart’s integration with OpenAI builds on its existing use of AI across operations. The company already applies AI to improve product catalog accuracy, shorten fashion production timelines by up to 18 weeks, and reduce customer care resolution times by as much as 40%.
The partnership also extends to Walmart’s workforce. Associates are being trained through OpenAI Certifications and given access to ChatGPT Enterprise, strengthening AI literacy and enabling more efficient workflows.
Key elements of Walmart’s AI-driven retail strategy include:
- Offering conversational shopping via ChatGPT Instant Checkout
- Using AI to streamline supply chain and product development
- Enhancing customer support with faster, data-driven resolutions
- Expanding internal AI training for employees across departments
By combining its massive product assortment, competitive pricing, and fast delivery with the intelligence of AI, Walmart is redefining convenience in ecommerce. The company maintains that the future of retail is not about replacing human connection, but about using AI to make everyday shopping easier, smarter, and more personalized.
Etsy: The Inaugural Partner Paving the Way
While Walmart’s announcement signals mass-market adoption, the groundwork for this new commerce model was laid a month earlier. Last month, Etsy became the inaugural partner for the U.S. launch of ChatGPT’s Instant Checkout feature.
The partnership provided an ideal testbed for OpenAI’s new commerce features. Etsy’s vast inventory of unique, handcrafted items is well-suited for the nuanced, descriptive queries at which the AI excels.
However, the integration is not available to all sellers on the platform. Eligibility is restricted to U.S.-based merchants enrolled in the “Offsite Ads” program.
This strategic detail meant the initial group of merchants was already accustomed to paying fees for sales driven by external platforms. This existing commercial arrangement likely simplified the financial negotiations and aligned incentives from the start.
The reaction from the Etsy seller community has been mixed. While some are optimistic about the new sales channel, others have voiced significant concerns.
Key worries from sellers include:
- A loss of direct customer interaction and brand-building opportunities.
- The transaction happening within OpenAI’s generic interface instead of their own storefront.
- Practical difficulties in collecting customer reviews, which are vital for small businesses.
Shopify Brings Massive Scale to Conversational Commerce
As the Etsy collaboration laid the groundwork, the Shopify announcement shifts the momentum into high gear. Etsy may have opened the door, but Shopify is driving the expansion of OpenAI’s retail strategy at full speed.
Shopify also announced that merchants will soon be able to sell directly through ChatGPT conversations – no redirects, just seamless commerce. This integration, announced alongside the Etsy launch, is positioned to onboard over a million Shopify merchants onto the Instant Checkout platform, transitioning it from a niche feature into a mainstream commercial channel.
The collaboration gives ChatGPT users access to a wide network of prominent D2C brands, including Glossier, SKIMS, Spanx, Vuori, and Steve Madden. The inclusion of these brands adds credibility and appeal to OpenAI’s growing retail ecosystem, reinforcing ChatGPT’s role as a legitimate shopping destination rather than just a conversational tool.
Shopify executives describe this as a defining moment for “agentic commerce” – a term describing transactions that occur directly within AI conversations. CEO Tobi Lütke hinted that this partnership had been in development for an extended period, while Shopify’s product team confirmed the goal is to ensure merchants can sell “anywhere AI conversations happen,” extending beyond traditional websites or social media.
The rollout reflects a deliberate “crawl, walk, run” strategy:
- Crawl – Etsy served as a testing ground with complex, non-standardized listings.
- Walk/Run – Shopify brings scale and standardization, connecting a vast merchant base and streamlining AI-driven commerce.
This phased approach minimized early risk while collecting essential data to refine user experience and seller integration. With Shopify now onboard, OpenAI’s model is poised to scale across both SMB and enterprise segments.
Yet, for Shopify, this partnership introduces a complex balance of opportunity and risk. It opens a lucrative new sales channel while challenging the long-term value of its core product—the branded storefront. Instant Checkout shifts the point of sale from merchant-owned sites into OpenAI’s ecosystem, creating a “frenemy” dynamic where Shopify must stay relevant in a channel that could also diminish its traditional advantage.
This evolving landscape forces every brand, from independent sellers to those managed by a full-service Amazon agency, to re-evaluate where their customers are and how to best reach them. Still, the strategic payoff is clear. By anchoring itself in conversational commerce, Shopify ensures its merchants remain visible and competitive in a future where shoppers increasingly buy inside AI-driven interfaces.
Salesforce Targets Enterprise Retail with ChatGPT Integration
If Etsy was the pilot and Shopify became the scale engine, Salesforce represents the enterprise bridge, connecting OpenAI’s retail ambitions to the upper tier of global commerce. Nicole Silberstein and Adam Blair reported in a Retail TouchPoint’s article that Salesforce’s integration signals a new phase in ChatGPT’s expansion across the retail landscape.
Salesforce has expanded its partnership with OpenAI by integrating its Agentforce Commerce suite – formerly known as Salesforce Commerce Cloud – with ChatGPT’s Instant Checkout feature. The integration will allow customers to complete purchases directly inside ChatGPT conversations, bypassing traditional websites entirely.
Product catalogs from merchants using Salesforce’s Agentforce Commerce will now appear within ChatGPT, enabling real-time discovery and in-app checkout. To power secure payments, Salesforce has partnered with Stripe to implement the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP), an open standard built for tokenized, privacy-compliant transactions.
This partnership serves as a gateway for hundreds of the world’s most established retailers to adopt conversational commerce at scale. Ecommerce clients of Salesforce – including L’Oréal Group, Pandora, and Saks – can now join Shopify and Etsy sellers in offering Instant Checkout within ChatGPT, with Walmart expected to follow later this fall.
The move delivers massive enterprise reach: 76 of North America’s Top 2000 online retailers use Salesforce for their e-commerce infrastructure, representing more than $182 billion in annual web sales. This positions the OpenAI–Salesforce integration as a high-impact on-ramp for global brands seeking secure and scalable access to AI-driven commerce.
Beyond merchant access, this collaboration transforms Salesforce into a strategic distribution partner for OpenAI’s Agentic Commerce Protocol. Instead of negotiating individual brand integrations, OpenAI gains instant exposure through Salesforce’s extensive network and sales channels.
The result is a self-reinforcing ecosystem. As Salesforce markets “Instant Checkout readiness” to its customer base, adoption accelerates, strengthening the protocol’s position as the emerging industry standard. Each new enterprise that activates the feature amplifies both platforms’ value, creating momentum that pushes agentic commerce further into the mainstream.
Rebecca Bellan, TechCrunch"This OpenAI Instant Checkout) frictionless experience sparks a new movement in how people shop, away from platforms like Google and Amazon, and toward conversational agents with curated recommendations and easy checkout."
