In recent months, Google has promised to inject generative AI into the online shopping experience, and now it’s following through. The previously announced shopping features of AI Mode search are rolling out, and Gemini will also worm its way into Google’s forgotten Duplex automated phone call tech. It’s all coming in time for the holidays to allegedly make your gifting more convenient and also conveniently ensure that Google gets a piece of the action.
At Google I/O in May, the company announced its intention to bring conversational shopping to AI Mode. According to Google, its enormous “Shopping Graph” or retailer data means its AI is uniquely positioned to deliver useful suggestions. In the coming weeks, users in the US will be able to ask AI Mode complex questions about what to buy, and it will deliver suggestions, guides, tables, and other generated content to help you decide. And since this is gen AI, it comes with the usual disclaimers about possible mistakes.
You’re probably wondering if there will be sponsored shopping content in these experiences, and that’s a big yes. Google says some of the content that appears in AI Mode will be ads, just like if you look up shopping results in a traditional search. Shopping features are also coming to the Gemini app, but Google says it won’t have sponsored content in the results for the time being.
Google is also releasing a feature called “agentic checkout,” a term used only in passing when the company announced the feature alongside AI Mode shopping at I/O. Google is really leaning into the agentic angle now, though. The gist is you can set a price threshold for a product in search, and Google will let you know if the item reaches that price. That part isn’t new, but there’s now an AI twist. After getting the alert, you can authorize an automatic purchase with Google Pay. However, it’s currently only supported at a handful of retailers like Chewy, Wayfair, and some Shopify merchants. It’s not clear whether this qualifies as agentic anything, but it might save you some money regardless.
AI Mode shopping and agentic checkout are beginning their rollout now, and Google says they will be available widely in time for the holiday shopping season.
Somehow, Duplex returned
Before the current AI craze, Google was fond of demoing Duplex, an Assistant-based AI designed to carry out real-world tasks on the phone. Google thought people would be willing to trust the AI to check business hours and make appointments, but it never gained much traction. The Duplex prompts slowly disappeared from Assistant over the years.
Now, Duplex is back with what Google calls a “big Gemini model upgrade.” It won’t be making appointments for you, but Google does still plan to use the updated Duplex to allow you to call businesses. This time, Duplex is aimed at saving you from calling stores to check on stock availability. Instead, you can tell the robot what you want, and it will check for you.
Google says when you search for certain products near you, you’ll see an option to “Let Google Call.” You’ll have to indicate what specific product you want, and the robot will begin calling around. The robot will identify itself as such when it places calls, which will only happen during business hours and after a reasonable cooldown. If businesses get too annoyed, they’re liable to opt out of Duplex calls, which is still an option.
Eventually, you’ll get an email or text message with AI summaries of the calls that could help you decide where to go. These messages may also include local inventory data from other nearby stores based on Google’s Shopping Graph. That sounds like it could mean more sponsored links, but it’s unclear. This feature is beginning its rollout today in categories like toys, cosmetics, and electronics. Unsurprisingly, this one is also US-only.
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