By Teresa Rivas

Consumers can ask AI almost anything, including whether that jacket they're eyeing is cute. Now Walmart shoppers can buy items directly from chatbots, too.

Walmart said Tuesday that it's teaming up with OpenAI to allow customers to purchase its products through ChatGPT using Instant Checkout.

The world's biggest retailer has already incorporated plenty of cutting-edge technology in its business, including artificial intelligence tied to product discovery and recommendations. This announcement goes a step further by allowing customers to shop ChatGPT recommendations directly.

Other companies have also been moving to integrate AI with shopping. At the end of September, OpenAI said consumers would be able to buy Etsy merchandise directly from its platform, with other Shopify merchants on the way.

Just as AI recommendations and chatbots have begun to eat away at general internet search, consumers are starting to turn to the technology to find specific products, instead of a search engine. Walmart and other consumer-facing companies already have AI-enabled search on their websites.

And retailers aren't the only ones benefiting. While AI has been growing by leaps and bounds, investors have wondered how that growth can be monetized, much like social media before it. In-platform shopping and affiliate links are one option to link sales directly to AI use.

Analysts are happy with Walmart's news.

Mizuho analyst David Bellinger called it "a major step forward in the adoption and broader acceleration of agentic commerce."

Agentic AI can autonomously set and achieve goals, such as suggesting products and learning consumer preferences without a direct command or prompt.

"Walmart is clearly ahead of the curve here, while others have been slow to adapt or even made efforts to block AI web crawlers," he wrote. "In our view, being the early leader in this vertical could drive much more volume to Walmart's core consumables and grocery-heavy business."

DA Davidson analyst Michael Baker echoed that sentiment: "This supports our view that Walmart will be a winner among traditional retailers in the agentic commerce race."

Investors seem to agree. Shares jumped 4.3% to $106.46 Tuesday afternoon, putting the stock on track for a fresh record close.

Write to Teresa Rivas at teresa.rivas@barrons.com

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October 17, 2025 21:30 ET (01:30 GMT)

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