Dive Brief:
- Nearly three-quarters of global consumers say they are using AI in their shopping journeys, according to a survey of more than 5,000 people released Monday by Riskified.
- Only 13% of consumers say they’ve had an AI complete a purchase after it guided them to a website, but 70% say they feel at least somewhat comfortable with an AI agent making purchases on their behalf.
- Consumers’ biggest concern for autonomous AI purchases, cited by about one-third of respondents, was payment security. Other top worries were privacy, potential mistakes and loss of control.
Dive Insight:
Nearly 3 in 5 consumers say they’re likely to use AI tools for gift shopping this year, according to Riskified. However, not all shoppers trust the technology.
Riskified found that 36% of consumers say they trust AI to influence their purchases, compared to 38% who say they rely on in-store associates. Some of the top use cases for AI assistants like ChatGPT are product ideas, summarizing reviews and comparing prices.
Other research has confirmed that trust in AI assistants, while common, is not universal.
For example, 2 in 5 American consumers say they have no trust in AI shopping assistants, according to a YouGov survey from this summer. Trust in AI is particularly fraught when the technology is integrated into search, and about half of consumers say they don’t trust the results of AI-powered search and summaries, according to Gartner research from September. Another 2 in 5 consumers say generative AI overviews make the search process more frustrating than traditional search.
Autonomous AI purchases face their own trust challenges. While consumers are more receptive to AI recommendations, they won’t hand over buying power until the technology proves it can curate and select products with human-level discernment, according to Julie Geller, principal research director at Info-Tech Research Group.
“The biggest barrier is psychological, not technical,” Geller said in an email. “Until AI can explain why it made a choice, show that it learns ethically, and prove it won’t drift from intent, people will keep it in advisory mode. Trust will build gradually, one transparent, well-handled decision at a time.”
Another barrier to adoption for AI shopping agents is the question of accountability, according to Jeff Otto, chief marketing officer at Riskified. When an AI agent makes a purchase, is the merchant liable when a dispute occurs even if the shopper never visited that merchant’s site?
Transparency and accountability will help truly win over consumers, according to Geller. Companies should respond to mistakes on the part of an AI agent with immediate recourse, including refunds, corrections and the assumption of responsibility.
“Trust grows when brands absorb the early risk, not when consumers pay for it in trial and error,” Geller said.
