Ecommerce technology provider Salesforce has announced new search functionality that adopts agentic artificial intelligence (AI).
The changes to search functionality follow the Salesforce acquisition of Cimulate, an AI-powered product discovery startup. In announcing the new feature, Salesforce said it introduced Cimulate’s “intent-aware” search for Agentforce Commerce, which is the former’s ecommerce suite and features agentic AI.
Pei Thong, product marketing director at Salesforce, wrote in a blog announcing the feature that it’s not “just a faster search bar.”
“It’s an AI-native discovery engine that interprets natural language and real-time behavior to predict exactly what a shopper wants,” Thong wrote.
Salesforce is also enabling retailers to reach shoppers through third-party AI channels. Through a new integration with the OpenAI’s Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP), Salesforce merchants can surface their product catalogs directly within ChatGPT.
Additionally, Salesforce is supporting the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), which Google helped to develop. Through that support, retailers can power AI-driven shopping across AI Mode in Google Search and the Gemini app, according to Salesforce.
In North America, 78 of the Top 2000 online retailers use Salesforce as their ecommerce platform, according to Digital Commerce 360 data. In 2025, those 78 online retailers combined for more than $192.60 billion in web sales. The Top 2000 is Digital Commerce 360’s database ranking North America’s largest online retailers by their annual ecommerce sales.
Salesforce uses Cimulate acquisition to power agentic search
Salesforce said it will support Cimulate’s CommerceGPT technology across digital storefronts using Agentforce Commerce. Furthermore, Thong wrote that Salesforce is helping move merchants “from simple keyword matching to intuitive, conversational discovery.”
Thong outlined three ways merchants can use the new Salesforce agentic search functionality:
- Intent-driven discovery. She said merchants can move beyond static keywords to understand shopper intent. That helps to find and explore products through real-time, natural conversation, according to Thong.
- More relevant results. Merchants can use Salesforce’s commerce-optimized small language model (SLM) context engine to provide “highly relevant search results and discovery experiences,” she wrote. The SLM engine combines real and simulated journey data.
- Merchandiser productivity. Thong said the functionality removes the need for extensive rule creation and maintenance. At the same time, it gives merchandisers tools to control AI-generated responses, she said.
How retailers are using Salesforce’s agentic search tool
In announcing its agentic search functionality, Salesforce shared how two retailers are using the technology.
Apparel and accessories retailer Pacsun is “delivering a more personalized and intuitive shopping journey,” Thong wrote.
Pacsun chief digital and information officer Shirley Gao said the retailer is committed to empowering digital-first consumers. She specifically identified Gen Z and Gen Alpha consumers who adopt new technology.
“We’re excited to launch our ChatGPT catalog integration through Salesforce, enabling near real-time access to brand and product information within AI conversations and transforming AI discovery into meaningful brand engagement,” Gao said. “Combined with Cimulate’s advanced AI search, which deeply understands customer intent, we deliver highly relevant, seamless discovery experiences that set a new standard for modern retail.”
Equipment retailer West Marine “previously depended on a search system requiring numerous hard-coded rules to deliver relevant results,” Thong wrote. She added that it has since eliminated manual overhead in adopting Cimulate’s intent-aware technology.
“By leveraging Cimulate’s CommerceGPT for site search and conversational commerce, we’ve seen shoppers engage longer, convert faster, and leave with greater confidence in their purchase,” said John Devine, chief information officer at West Marine. “It’s not just better site search; it’s a new way of connecting expertise with our customer’s needs.”
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