OpenAI is accelerating its expansion into agentic commerce, positioning ChatGPT not only as a product discovery tool but as a transaction platform capable of completing purchases inside a conversational interface.
Since late last year, the company has rolled out in-chat checkout capabilities in the United States, introduced an open technical standard for AI-enabled transactions and deepened partnerships with major payments providers — moves that signal a broader strategy to embed commerce directly into AI workflows.
In September, OpenAI announced the debut of “Instant Checkout” within ChatGPT, allowing users to complete select purchases without leaving the chat interface.
“More than 700 million people turn to ChatGPT each week for help with everyday tasks, including finding products they love,” OpenAI said in its September announcement. “We’re taking the first steps toward ChatGPT helping people buy them too — beginning with Instant Checkout, powered by the Agentic Commerce Protocol.”
How OpenAI is using the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP)
The initial rollout supported U.S.-based transactions and single-item purchases with select merchants. OpenAI said at launch that merchant participation would expand, including sellers operating on major ecommerce platforms. The move marks one of the first large-scale efforts to collapse product discovery, comparison and checkout into a single AI-driven interface.
Central to the strategy is the Agentic Commerce Protocol, or ACP, an open framework OpenAI co-developed with Stripe and released last year.
ACP establishes standardized APIs that allow AI agents to securely access merchant product catalogs, pricing and checkout systems. The ACP is open-sourced, enabling merchants and platforms to implement compatible endpoints without relying exclusively on OpenAI infrastructure.
In its launch materials, OpenAI described ACP as a way to “help businesses grow in the era of agentic commerce.” It emphasized that merchants retain control over order acceptance, fulfillment and customer relationships.
The protocol relies on tokenized payment flows and structured data exchanges. OpenAI designed them to protect user credentials while allowing AI systems to initiate transactions programmatically.
Industry analysts said the open standard approach could accelerate adoption by reducing integration friction for merchants wary of closed marketplaces.
OpenAI continues to expand its portfolio of integrations
OpenAI has also expanded its payments ecosystem to support agent-enabled transactions.
In October 2025, PayPal announced it would adopt ACP to power in-chat payments within ChatGPT. The partnership extends agentic commerce capabilities to PayPal’s global merchant network.
“Hundreds of millions of people turn to ChatGPT each week for help with everyday tasks, including finding products they love, and over 400 million use PayPal to shop,” said Alex Chriss, PayPal president and CEO, in the October announcement. “By partnering with OpenAI and adopting the Agentic Commerce Protocol, PayPal will power payments and commerce experiences that help people go from chat to checkout in just a few taps.”
Stripe remains a foundational partner for Instant Checkout, providing core payments infrastructure for the initial deployments.
Together, the integrations signal that OpenAI is building its commerce layer atop existing financial networks rather than replacing them. Its strategy aims at accelerating scale while minimizing regulatory and operational complexity.
OpenAI has also extended the agentic commerce model into grocery and delivery categories.
In a separate announcement, the company detailed deeper integration with Instacart. It enables users to move from recipe ideas to grocery checkout within ChatGPT. The integration connects conversational AI with real-time inventory and fulfillment systems. That step broadens the practical applications of agent-enabled transactions beyond discretionary retail into everyday purchasing.
What’s in store for OpenAI in 2026
OpenAI has not published a detailed 2026 commerce roadmap. However, its developer materials and merchant onboarding efforts indicate several next phases:
- Expansion beyond single-item checkout to support multi-item carts.
- Broader international rollout beyond the United States.
- Increased merchant onboarding through ACP.
- Continued enhancements to ChatGPT’s agent capabilities, enabling more complex task execution.
OpenAI has not disclosed revenue projections tied to commerce transactions. Historically, the company has generated income through subscription plans and enterprise licensing. Transaction fees and commerce partnerships could represent an additional revenue stream, though executives have not publicly quantified expectations.
OpenAI’s commerce initiatives reflect a larger transition in digital buying behavior. Rather than navigating search engines, marketplaces and brand websites separately, consumers may increasingly rely on AI systems to manage the full purchasing journey.
By embedding structured product data and checkout flows directly into ChatGPT, OpenAI is seeking to position AI as the front door to commerce — a move that could reshape search traffic, advertising models, and merchant visibility strategies.
As of early 2026, agentic commerce is no longer experimental. Through Instant Checkout, ACP and payments partnerships, OpenAI has begun operationalizing AI-driven transactions — marking a significant evolution in how conversational systems intersect with ecommerce.
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