Your Cart Just Got Smarter: AI Agents Are Changing Everything About E-Commerce

Following our earlier dive into the East-West AI showdown, where Alibaba’s Qwen models edged out U.S. giants in efficiency and openness amid chip wars, let’s zoom in on the agentic frontier.

As of November 2025, AI agents aren’t just chatty sidekicks; they’re autonomous shoppers, deal-hunters, and closers, turning “I want that” into “It’s bought.” China’s Qwen ecosystem exemplifies a closed-loop model: tightly woven into Alibaba’s Taobao-Alipay empire for seamless, high-volume retail.

Globally, Google’s Project Astra and Agent Payments Protocol (AP2) push an open-loop vision: interoperable “rails” linking agents across life facets like travel, fashion, and finance, backed by 60+ partners including Mastercard and PayPal.

This contrast isn’t just tech, it’s a behavioral quake, flipping consumers from data-drowned hunters to bot-delegators, while merchants scramble for algorithmic favor. Yet, as agents monetize payments, monopoly shadows loom, hinging on hard-won user trust.

What Are The Use Cases?

Now imagine this: you open ChatGPT, the app you already use every day, and simply type to your familiar chatbot: “Healthy dinner for two, under $200, delivered in 30 minutes, no coriander.” Five seconds later, the reply pops up: “Got it! Grilled salmon set from Café de Coral plus veggie sides from Pret. Total: $178. Delivery in 28 minutes. Pay now?” You tap “Yes.” Done. Ten seconds total. That’s the magic of AI agent commerce, a personal shopping robot that hunts, compares, negotiates, and pays while you relax.

This isn’t science fiction. It’s happening right now, built directly into the chat apps and large language models (LLMs) we already rely on, Qwen, Google Messages, or ChatGPT. You speak or type in everyday language. The AI remembers your preferences, searches thousands of stores in seconds, finds the best deal, and handles payment securely with your saved card or Octopus. No extra apps, no logins, no forms. Just one conversation.

These aren’t just smarter chatbots. They’re AI agents , autonomous digital shoppers built right into the apps we use daily: WeChat, WhatsApp, Google Messages, and ChatGPT. They remember your preferences, scan thousands of stores in seconds, negotiate the best price, and pay securely with your saved card or Octopus , all without you leaving the conversation. No new apps, no logins, no forms. Just one message.

Tech Giants Eyeing on the Sector

Two tech giants are racing to own this future, and each is taking a very different path. Google launched its Agent Payments Protocol (AP2) in September 2025 with more than 60 partners, including PayPal, Mastercard, Coinbase and surprisingly even Alibaba. It’s deliberately open and decentralised to support digital asset settlements as well as the transparency of the digital trail.

Alibaba, powered by its Qwen models (already downloaded over 600 million times), chose the closed-loop approach that dominates China and much of Asia. Inside Taobao or the Qwen app, you say “Restock milk and diapers,” and the agent instantly finds the cheapest seller, applies coupons, pays via Alipay, and schedules delivery, all within Alibaba’s walled garden of a billion users. It’s lightning-fast because everything is already connected.

What Is The Opportunity

For shoppers, the shift is life-changing. Before AI, we either had no information and guessed blindly, or we drowned in data, spending 2–3 hours a week hunting deals, according to Forrester. Today, 59% of consumers already use AI for shopping, with Gen Z leading at 66% trusting it more than friends’ advice (PWC 2025). Cart abandonment? Down from 70%. Conversion rates? Up 52% in Alibaba pilots. One message replaces endless scrolling.

Merchants feel the pressure too. With AI agents making decisions, competition is fiercer than ever. Stores must now be “AI-friendly”, clean data, sharp prices, real reviews, or risk being skipped entirely. Direct website traffic has already dropped 15% as bots pull products without sending users to the site. Smart brands are fighting back by creating their own mini-agents or connecting to Google’s open rails, giving small shops a fighting chance.

Challenges Remain

Of course, risks remain. Only 24% of people currently let bots touch their money, and 67% worry about privacy. A breach could expose both your card and your shopping habits. If everyone ends up using Google or Alibaba agents, those companies could favour their own partners or hide better deals. Trust has to be earned with crystal-clear receipts, instant cancellations, and genuine transparency.

Yet the upside is enormous. McKinsey predicts AI agents will handle 20% of all e-commerce by the end of 2025, growing into a US$17.5 trillion market by 2030. Google’s open rails could one day let a single AI plan your outfit, book your flight, and order matching luggage in one breath. Add crypto wallets and stablecoins, and global, fee-free payments become trivial.

Closing Thought: The Future Is Already in Your Chat

From the OAX Foundation perspective we think AI agents in commerce are coming before you know it. When AI agents (already living inside AI chat windows) finally shake hands with digital wallets and stablecoins, borders vanish. This isn’t about handing over control but it’s about taking back your time.

As a decentralised ecosystem advocate, while we think Alibaba’s integration of agents in their ecosystem makes an immediate impact, we’re intrigued by Google’s grand ambition in combining AI agents with decentralised rails. We’re not comparing apples to apples but both tech giants seeing an opportunity to change the rules of commerce in the days to come.

In sum, agents are the 2025 commerce accelerant: Qwen’s loops simplify daily buys in controlled gardens; Google’s rails exponentially link life with commerce, but merchants must algorithm-align, and providers earn trust to dodge monopoly traps. As bots shop for us, the real win is reclaimed time, for now. What’s your take: Ready to delegate your cart?

Disclaimer: The above is an opinion piece written by an authorized author, but in no way represents the official standpoint of OAX Foundation Limited, nor should it be meant to serve as investment advice.