PYMNTS reports that 58.4 million U.S. adults now begin online retail research with AI, up 18% since June. The same research shows only 24% of consumers would let an AI agent shop and buy for them, while 52.3% prefer keeping their card outside the AI app. The discovery happens in AI, the checkout stays with the customer. That split matters for how you feed the channel.
PYMNTS's Consumer AI Benchmark tracks the same shift with a stricter question. In its August survey of 2,191 U.S. consumers, fielded August 10 to 13, the share who name AI as their main starting point for retail research grew from 21.4% in June to 23.2%, about 60.9 million people. The share who have used AI to discover products rose from 22.9% to 25.8% over the same two months, reaching 67.8 million consumers.
Across 60 U.S. merchants surveyed by PYMNTS, 53% felt prepared to share real-time inventory data, but only 23% felt prepared to connect with AI platforms or agent networks. Merchants are least ready at the handoff to AI platforms, and most ready on the catalog side.
CarMax shows what the handoff looks like when a brand gets it right. On September 29, the company said it routes 100% of inbound store and customer experience center calls through AI voice agents built with Sierra. The agents answer questions like store hours and vehicle availability and pass the rest to associates. CarMax also puts more than 45,000 vehicles in front of shoppers through its ChatGPT app. CEO Keith Barr said every used car is an individual SKU, which makes the final transaction hard for AI to take over. The AI handles the discovery and the service, a person closes the sale. That is the pattern to watch in your category.
DoubleVerify made the channel measurable on October 5. It launched attribution measurement for advertising on ChatGPT, so advertisers can incorporate ChatGPT Ads as a touchpoint within the broader customer journey and understand contribution to outcomes and ROAS. Weight Watchers added ChatGPT Ads as a new source of member acquisition and used DV Rockerbox to measure it. ChatGPT's attributed cost per acquisition was 15.3% below Weight Watchers' established benchmark during the measured period. A growth team can use that number to compare ChatGPT Ads against other acquisition channels.
For a brand, the first move is to confirm that the assistants your customers ask can read your product data, because both the CarMax pattern and the new ChatGPT Ads measurement build on it.
Common questions
How many consumers actually use AI for shopping research?
PYMNTS reports that 58.4 million U.S. adults now begin online retail research with AI, up 18% since June. In its August benchmark survey, 23.2% of U.S. consumers, about 60.9 million people, named AI as their main starting point for retail research, up from 21.4% in June.
Are consumers ready to let AI agents buy for them?
Only 24% of consumers in the PYMNTS research would let an AI agent shop and buy for them, and 52.3% prefer keeping their card outside the AI app. Discovery happens in AI, checkout stays with the customer.
What does CarMax's AI rollout show?
CarMax routes 100% of inbound store and customer experience center calls through AI voice agents built with Sierra, and it puts more than 45,000 vehicles in front of shoppers through its ChatGPT app. The AI handles discovery and service, a person closes the sale.
How do I measure advertising on ChatGPT?
DoubleVerify launched attribution measurement for ChatGPT Ads on October 5, letting advertisers incorporate the channel into their broader customer journey. Weight Watchers measured a CPA 15.3% below its benchmark using DV Rockerbox.