OpenAI has launched a new feature in ChatGPT called shopping research, created to help people shop with less effort during the busy holiday season.
Whenever you ask a question related to shopping, this feature automatically turns on. It is available to everyone on both free and paid plans, and OpenAI says users can enjoy almost unlimited access to it throughout the holidays.
If you ask something like the best TVs for bright rooms, ChatGPT will give you an answer and then offer a button that lets you continue researching. This is where it acts like a personal shopper. You can narrow down your options by choosing your price range, how you plan to use the item, and the features you want. It feels similar to using filters on an online shopping site.
After that, ChatGPT shows products that match what you’re looking for. You can buy these items on the sellers’ websites, and OpenAI plans to introduce Instant Checkout soon so people can purchase items directly inside ChatGPT when supported by participating stores. OpenAI does remind users that the tool might sometimes get details like price or availability wrong, so it’s always a good idea to check the store’s website for the latest information.
Many other tech companies are also trying to bring shopping tools into their platforms. Google recently added new AI shopping options, and Perplexity’s Comet browser includes an AI agent that can shop for users. This approach has raised concerns from companies like Amazon. Some people jokingly call this trend the DoorDash problem, where AI becomes the middleman in situations that used to be direct.
According to OpenAI, this new feature runs on a version of GPT-5 mini that has been specially trained for shopping tasks. It gathers information from trusted sources across the internet and includes current details such as price, availability, reviews, specs, and images. It can also adjust its suggestions based on your past conversations and your saved memory settings if those are turned on. You can click options like more like this or not interested to fine-tune the results.
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Users on the Pro plan will also see product recommendations packaged as buyer’s guides that are based on their recent chats with Pulse. For example, if someone has been talking about electric bikes, Pulse may later recommend useful accessories for them.
