AI is rapidly changing how people shop online and Shopify is positioning itself at the center of that transformation. With more than half (51%) of Gen Z now starting their shopping journey on AI platforms, the next wave of commerce isn’t happening in search bars or social feeds. It’s happening through AI agents.
Shopify’s strategy is clear: make sure merchants’ products, prices, and store policies are accessible, accurate, and actionable in this new AI-driven world. Here’s how they’re doing it.
Discoverability in the Age of AI
AI agents like ChatGPT, Claude, and others rely on structured, real time data to surface the right products for shoppers. That means discoverability now depends on how easily AI can understand and interact with your store.
Shopify has been quietly building this foundation for years with robust GraphQL APIs, extensible data models, and standardized endpoints that give AI systems access to:
- Complete and accurate product details
- Real time pricing and inventory
- Product variants and bundles
- Dynamic and localized pricing
By organizing data through the Shopify Catalog, Shopify makes product information agent-readable, meaning AI can instantly fetch up-to-date pricing, product descriptions, and images directly from your store, with zero setup required from merchants.
Agentic Infrastructure: Catalog, Cart, and Checkout
Shopify is creating what it calls agentic infrastructure: the connective tissue that lets AI systems not just find products, but also buy them.
1. Shopify Catalog
An opinionated, AI-optimized data model that aggregates product data and feeds it to AI agents in a structured format. Merchants on Shopify are automatically included, making every product instantly discoverable by AI.
2. Universal Cart
A universal shopping cart that maintains a merchant’s business logic (discounts, shipping, bundles, subscriptions, etc) across any AI platform. Shoppers can track and add products from any store, all in one place.
3. Checkout Kit
AI agents can render a fully functional checkout that preserves merchant configurations. The same trusted Shopify Checkout (the highest converting checkout on the web) now works seamlessly across AI-powered shopping experiences.
Shopify + OpenAI: Buying Through ChatGPT
Shopify’s partnership with OpenAI is the most visible example of this new ecosystem. Shoppers can now discover and buy products directly through ChatGPT.
Here’s how it works:
- Product discovery happens through Shopify’s real time catalog.
- Localized pricing and inventory ensure accuracy.
- When an order is placed, Shopify handles the fulfillment just like any other order passing customer info, confirmation, and tracking data back to the merchant.
There’s a small (4%) fee on top of standard transaction rates, and it’s currently in closed beta for U.S. merchants using Shopify Payments and eligible Shop products.
Connecting AI and Commerce: The MCP Standard
All of this is powered by MCP (Model Context Protocol), an open source standard that acts like a “USB-C port” for AI systems. MCP lets AI apps securely connect to external systems like Shopify, giving them real time access to store data, workflows, and logic.
In practice, that means developers can build AI agents that:
- Search store policies and FAQs
- Pull real time product info
- Add products to cart
- Process checkouts
- Handle customer service questions like “Where’s my order?”
Shopify even provides a Storefront MCP, allowing developers to create custom AI sales agents or clienteling tools that integrate directly with a store’s catalog and customer data.
Knowledge Base App: Teaching AI About Your Brand
AI agents rely on your store’s data but now merchants can actively shape that knowledge through the Shopify Knowledge Base App.
This app lets you:
- View which FAQs and policies AI agents are accessing
- Add or override answers to better reflect your brand
- See which customer questions go unanswered
- Continuously improve how AI represents your store
In short, it’s how you train AI agents to speak your brand’s language and build trust with your buyers.
Sidekick: AI for Merchants
While AI agents assist shoppers, Shopify Sidekick empowers merchants. Acting as your personal AI partner, Sidekick helps you:
- Generate content and creative assets
- Build site sections or apps by describing what you want
- Access instant data insights and analytics
It’s Shopify’s vision of an “AI first ecosystem,” where every merchant, not just enterprise brands, can leverage intelligent tools to run, grow, and automate their business.
The Bottom Line
AI is no longer a separate category. It’s becoming the new interface for commerce. Shopify’s approach bridges the gap between human creativity and machine intelligence, giving merchants the infrastructure to thrive in an AI-driven economy.
If your brand is on Shopify, you’re already part of this ecosystem. The next step is making sure your product data, policies, and customer experiences are AI ready.
