The news: Online retail traffic from generative AI (genAI) sources is exploding, highlighting how AI tools are intercepting and guiding the product search journey.

• GenAI traffic to US retail sites grew 4,700% YoY in July, per Adobe Digital Insights.
• 38% of US consumers have used genAI for shopping, and another 52% plan to do so this year.

Closing the gap: Growing confidence in AI is narrowing the gap between AI-assisted shoppers and traditional shoppers.

• Out of the 38% of consumers who are genAI users, 83% are likely to use the technology for complex or bigger purchases, suggesting confidence in its ability to support high-stakes, high-value shopping moments.
• Among all consumers, 40% use genAI for product recommendations, underscoring user trust in AI’s capacity to understand user preferences and make relevant suggestions.

Mobile ascendance: AI is also becoming more embedded in mobile shopping, including voice assistant and on-the-go shopping queries: 26% of genAI-driven retail traffic came through mobile in July, per Adobe, up from 18% in January.

That’s a departure from general AI use, where desktop dominates. 94% of ChatGPT referral traffic and 91% of Gemini’s comes from desktop users, per BrightEdge.

Mobile’s AI shopping surge could mark a rise of impulse-led, AI-powered shopping on the go.

The risk: AI tools can intercept the user search journey before it begins, collapsing searching, researching, and purchasing into a single action. Brands risk losing control of the user experience if AI tools manage site navigation and decision-making.

Control over digital experiences is shifting from retailers to AI intermediaries, which raises the stakes for relevance and visibility and pushes the need for generative engine optimization (GEO).

Our take: Brands need to market to both machines and people to avoid being excluded from AI results.

Success will involve understanding how models interpret product data and reviews and aligning messaging with the signals AI uses to index and recommend products.

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