Google is dramatically expanding its AI-powered shopping features, automating tasks ranging from product research and price tracking to making purchases and even calling stores on your behalf. These updates aim to streamline the consumer experience, but also raise questions about convenience versus control.
AI-Powered Product Discovery
Google’s Search and Gemini apps are being updated to offer more conversational shopping. Users can now describe desired products in natural language—for example, “cozy sweaters for happy hour in warm autumn colors”—and receive shoppable results with pricing, reviews, and stock availability. Gemini can also generate shopping lists based on specific needs, such as gifts for students or Black Friday deals.
Automated Store Calls
A key new feature is Google’s ability to call businesses to gather information on your behalf. This is intended to help users who dislike phone calls, have social anxiety, or have disabilities that make direct contact difficult. When searching for products “near me,” users can select the “let Google call” option, and the AI will inquire about pricing, availability, and other details before relaying the answers via text or email. The rollout is limited, excluding states like Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, Montana, and Nebraska, though businesses can opt out.
AI-Driven Purchases with Google Pay
Google is now testing an agentic AI checkout feature, allowing the system to monitor product availability and price drops. Users can set target prices, and when a match is found, the AI will notify them. Critically, the AI can also autonomously purchase the item using Google Pay, but only with explicit user confirmation before proceeding. This feature is initially available in the U.S. with select vendors like Wayfair, Chewy, Quince, and Shopify stores.
Virtual Try-On and Shopping Graph
Complementing these features is Google’s virtual fitting room, enabling users to upload photos and see themselves wearing clothes before buying. This is powered by Google’s Shopping Graph, a massive dataset of over 50 billion product listings updated hourly.
Legal Friction with Amazon
These updates arrive amid legal disputes. Amazon recently sued Perplexity for its AI-powered shopping assistant, which allows one-click purchases from Amazon without permission. Google’s rollout currently excludes Amazon, avoiding similar immediate conflict.
These AI-driven shopping features represent a significant step toward fully automated commerce, offering convenience while raising questions about data privacy, overspending, and the future of human control in the purchasing process
