A new shopping feature on ChatGPT dropped just in time for my mom’s birthday.
However, I’m not convinced it can help me find the right gift.
OpenAI said September 29 that it was introducing a new shopping feature called Instant Checkout that would allow US-based ChatGPT free, Plus, and Pro users to search and purchase items right in their chats. For now, it’s available on items from Etsy, with Shopify merchants, like Glossier, Skims, Spanx and Vuori, coming soon.
The ChatGPT maker, whose CEO, Fidji Simo, hails from Instacart, seems to have big plans for shopping. It struck a deal with Walmart that will soon allow people to make purchases from the world’s largest retailer directly within the app. Other companies, including delivery apps Instacart and DoorDash and retailer Target, are also building shopping experiences within the AI chatbot. Some people also use ChatGPT as a shopping assistant, comparing things like price and style across brands and retailers.
With more shopping experiences to come, I decided to try out ChatGPT’s Instant Checkout feature.
You can’t go wrong with jewelry as a gift
For her birthday, my mom wants a mixed-metal bracelet made with sterling silver and gold, and I set a budget of $400. Etsy sounded like a good place to find unique handmade jewelry for her gift.
So, I followed my chatbot’s instructions by simply asking it to “show me handmade silver and gold bracelets on Etsy.
It asked for more details, such as my budget and style preference. It then pulled up a list of seven options available on Etsy.
This is where I started to wonder if I was doing something wrong. The options had links next to them that would take me to their Etsy listings, but there was no button for buying directly on ChatGPT. Not to mention, one of the items it suggested was a $2,400 bracelet cuff — much higher than the budget I gave.
It asked if I wanted it to narrow down the search to only include items with the in-chat “Buy” feature available, to which I said yes.
“I tried to find listings that support Instant Checkout in ChatGPT, but I couldn’t reliably tell from product data whether each one is eligible,” it replied, with bracelet style suggestions.
The items have to be eligible for Instant Checkout
ChatGPT gave me a list of requirements that would make an item on Etsy available for Instant Checkout:
- Only US users can currently use ChatGPT’s Instant Checkout for Etsy.
- The listing must be from an Etsy seller who participates in Offsite Ads (those are the sellers whose listings can be “instantly purchased” in ChatGPT).
- If the product shows “Visit” instead of “Buy,” it’s not eligible for Instant Checkout.
The second requirement made it clear that availability on ChatGPT was up to each Etsy seller, not the marketplace itself. It was then that I realized that it would be harder than I thought to track down an Instant Checkout-eligible bracelet.
I tried a couple of other partners, like Skims and Glossier, to see if they’d rolled out yet since the announcement was about two weeks ago. No luck.
It was time to change strategies
I widened my search and asked ChatGPT to find necklaces on Etsy instead. I got the same results. Although OpenAI’s press release said the feature is already out for US users, I asked ChatGPT to confirm that it was available to me.
When it was confirmed, I asked it to find a few examples of items available to purchase through ChatGPT. Again, no luck.
“I couldn’t reliably confirm any specific items right now that definitely support ‘Buy in ChatGPT / Instant Checkout’ from Etsy,” the chatbot said.
I contacted OpenAI to see if it might be user error, and didn’t receive a response.
I resorted to using ChatGPT to find recommendations for necklaces rather than use a search engine. I was pleased with the results.
The chatbot gave me ideas for places, like Etsy or Nordstrom, to find mixed-metal cuff bracelets. I got more specific by asking for brand names, and it listed places like Cartier, Pandora, and more, with pros and cons.
I then told ChatGPT to find me items across retailers that match my criteria and are available for purchase. It gave me a list of bracelets from brands including Kendra Scott and Mejuri, all of which fit what I was looking for — though I had to prompt it again to give me direct links to the product listings. I wasn’t in love with any of the options, though.
I ended my search there, with my cart empty and the search for the right bracelet continuing elsewhere.
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