OpenAI Instant Checkout: The New SEO?

OpenAI's recent launch of Instant Checkout, an in-app shopping feature, has ignited discussions about the future of commerce. Ironically, experts are focusing less on its implications for OpenAI’s ad strategies, and more on its potential impact on agentic commerce, product discovery, and zero-click search.

This development indicates a shift in product discovery, moving away from traditional search engines toward AI-powered conversations. There is an expectation that AI chatbots will emerge as the next major arena for brand awareness.

The New SEO Landscape

According to Martin Kristiseter, the CEO of Digital Remedy, this shift mirrors the rise of Google and SEO, raising questions about how brands can optimize their visibility within these new AI systems.

The introduction of OpenAI’s Instant Checkout—enabling users to search, shop, and make purchases within ChatGPT—was anticipated, especially as more consumers begin using AI chatbots to initiate their online shopping journeys. For example, a report by VML indicates that 68% of shoppers globally have already used AI tools like ChatGPT for shopping.

Other large language models have introduced similar features, such as Perplexity’s Buy with Pro and Microsoft Copilot’s Merchant program.

Ad Spend and Future Growth

Despite these advancements, ad spending has not yet significantly shifted toward these tools. Agencies express a greater concern about missing out on the AI trend than expecting immediate growth. Mike Feldman, SVP of commerce at Flywheel, notes that while there's significant potential for disruption, many are taking a “wait and see” approach.

Instant Checkout is currently in its early stages, featuring a limited number of merchants and a somewhat cumbersome user experience. It remains unclear how much insight merchants and their agency partners will gain into areas like brand sentiment and product listing rankings. OpenAI has stated that data sharing will be kept to a minimum.

Questions for Marketers

Marketers are questioning how to allocate brand or performance budgets for testing, how AI chatbots rank products, what search query data will be available, and whether enough consumers will adopt AI chatbots for shopping to justify the investment. Brands need a strong web presence to rank high in AI chatbot results.

Zubin Mowlavi, EVP of commerce at Vayner Media, emphasizes the importance of a brand's overall web presence for ChatGPT's recommendations. There is already client interest in AI commerce, but strategies and budgets are still being developed.

Agentic AI could face setbacks, with Gartner predicting that over 40% of agentic AI projects will be abandoned by 2027. Simon Poulton from Tinuiti observes that there's widespread curiosity but also a sense of information overload.

The Stakes for Brands

As brands race to establish themselves around AI assistants, the stakes are high. Brad Jashinsky, director analyst at Gartner, views this as just the beginning of a transformative journey.