Google is expanding its AI shopping tools ahead of the holiday season, bringing more of the buying journey into Search, AI Mode and the Gemini app. The company introduced features for conversational product discovery, richer shopping ideas, automated checkout steps and local store calls.
The central idea is simple: keep the browsing and discovery parts of shopping, while reducing the repetitive work that often comes with comparing products, watching prices and checking availability.
Shopping searches become more conversational
One of the main updates is coming to AI Mode, Google’s conversational search experience. Instead of typing a narrow product query and sorting through standard results, shoppers can ask more natural shopping questions and receive responses shaped around the request.
Google says those answers can include images when visual inspiration matters. A search for cozy sweaters in autumn colors, for example, would bring back photos of relevant options. For other kinds of queries, the presentation may change. If the shopper is comparing skin care products, Google may organize the response as a comparison table.
The results can also include practical buying details such as price, reviews and available inventory. That matters because AI shopping is not only about generating ideas. It also has to help people decide what is actually available and worth considering.
Google said AI Mode is powered by its Shopping Graph, which includes over 50 billion product listings. The company also said 2 billion of those listings are updated every hour, and that the inventory information shown is usually up-to-date.
Gemini gets richer shopping ideas
Google is also adding shopping features inside the Gemini app. For shopping-related questions, Gemini will be able to return more developed ideas rather than only text suggestions.
That makes the app another place where Google is trying to turn a broad shopping intent into something more usable. A shopper may not begin with a specific product name. They may start with a need, a category, a color, a use case or a comparison. Google’s update is aimed at giving that kind of request a fuller response.
The Gemini shopping update is currently available only to users in the U.S. Google also confirmed that consumers using AI Mode will see sponsored listings. Because the features are still experimental, those ads are not appearing in the Gemini mobile app yet.
Agentic checkout watches prices and completes purchases
The most direct shopping update is agentic checkout within Google Search in the U.S., including in AI Mode. The feature is currently compatible with merchants like Wayfair, Chewy, Quince, and select Shopify stores.
The process begins with price tracking. A shopper can track an item and ask to be notified when its price drops into their budget. After that, the shopper can choose to have Google buy the item on the merchant’s website using Google Pay.
Google says the system will ask for permission before making the purchase. The shopper will also confirm the purchase and shipping details.
Lilian Rincon, VP of product management for Google Shopping, described the feature as useful for both sides of the transaction. For shoppers, it removes the need to keep checking whether an item has gone on sale. For retailers, she said, it can bring back a customer who might otherwise have moved on.
Rincon also said agentic checkout is built on Google’s trusted shopping graph and G Pay, pointing to accurate results and secure payment information as part of the pitch.
An AI can call local stores for product details
Google is also rolling out an AI feature that calls businesses for shoppers. The tool can ask whether a store carries a product, how much it costs and whether there are any promotions.
The feature is built on Google’s Duplex technology, introduced back in 2018, along with its Shopping Graph and payments infrastructure. After the shopper provides details about the product they want, the AI calls local stores and returns with a summary of what it found.
This feature is rolling out now in the U.S. for specific categories including toys, health and beauty products, and electronics. To use it, shoppers can search for products “near me” and then choose “Let Google Call.” The AI then asks follow-up questions about the item being searched for.
Google says it is also considering how merchants experience these calls. The company said the chatbot will not call too often and will keep its questions clear. Retailers can opt out of receiving the calls.
For stores that do not opt out, the call begins with Google disclosing that an AI is calling on behalf of a customer. The call only continues when the recipient says it is okay.
What the rollout signals
Taken together, the updates show Google pushing AI shopping beyond product recommendations. The new tools cover several steps of the buying process: asking questions, comparing options, checking inventory, tracking prices and completing purchases.
The company’s framing is that online shopping still requires too much effort. Vidhya Srinivasan, VP and GM of ads and commerce at Google, said during a press briefing that shopping should be more natural and easy while preserving browsing and discovery.
There are limits. Some features are only in the U.S. Some are experimental. Sponsored listings are present in AI Mode, while ads are not yet appearing in the Gemini mobile app. The store-calling tool is also limited to specific categories at launch.
Still, the direction is clear from the features Google chose to introduce. AI shopping is moving from answering questions toward taking actions, with the shopper still asked to approve key steps such as purchases and shipping details.
Google executives planned to demo the store-calling technology during the press briefing on Wednesday, but Wi-Fi issues prevented the demo from being completed.