Most shoppers are fine with screens in grocery stores and a growing number are actively buying because of it. What they won't tolerate is a screen that gets in their way.

As retailers push into agentic commerce, success may hinge less on the technology itself and more on how quickly consumers are willing to change their habits.

Consumers are approaching holiday shopping with a sharper focus on value, taking more time to compare options and make deliberate choices, often with the help of AI tools. For brands, this shift changes what will drive results at the tail end of the year.

David’s Bridal shoppers can now make purchases within ChatGPT or Microsoft Copilot, another signal that retail at large is headed on an AI-enabled path.

The lack of a standard definition for agentic commerce reveals a fundamental split in how the industry is preparing for AI’s role in shopping

The path to purchase describes how consumers move from initial awareness to buying a product or service. In 2026, that journey looks nothing like the linear funnel marketers once relied on. Generative AI (genAI) tools, social commerce platforms, and compressed decision cycles are creating new routes to conversion that bypass traditional search-and-browse patterns. This FAQ examines what is driving these shifts and how marketers can adapt.

As younger consumers enter adulthood, merchants can capitalize on their shifting payment preference for wallets.

Agentic shopping could account for more than a quarter of ecommerce spending within the next few years, according to a September 2025 Boston Consulting Group report. But that potential hinges on retailers integrating AI into the shopping journey in ways that feel beneficial to consumers.

Paze still must combat entrenched consumer checkout habits with competitors like PayPal

This FAQ explores the main types of loyalty programs and how retailers can use them to drive lasting customer relationships.

Social commerce has moved beyond a trend or an experiment and become a real part of how people are shopping today. “What started as discovery and inspiration has now become shoppable, immediate, and increasingly transactional, often in a single sitting,” said our analyst Suzy Davidkhanian on a recent episode of “Behind the Numbers.”

On February 20, eBay’s updated user agreement goes into effect, banning third-party AI agents that autonomously buy for consumers, targeting the emerging “buy-for-me” tools designed to handle discovery, decisioning, and checkout.

Walmart wants discretion to refuse cards based on their issuer at the point-of-sale, per an objection filed in response to the proposed settlement to end the decadeslong interchange fee legal battle. While new types of fee agreements with banks remain entirely speculative at this point, it’s unclear whether a patchwork quilt of deals with issuers would benefit Walmart. Discontinuing acceptance of certain issuers at the POS will likely cause just as much friction for consumers as the purportedly “useless” changes to the honor all cards rule, especially if Walmart stands alone in its issuer blacklist.

In 2026, stablecoins, agentic commerce, and AI-driven rewards will reshape the payments industry. Providers need to bet early or risk being sidelined by faster, cheaper, and more intuitive payment experiences.

Mobile will account for nearly half of US online sales in 2026 and become the dominant channel in 2027. To make the most of this shift, retailers and brands should enhance integration of their shopping apps and loyalty programs.

Global Payments released a modular, countertop point-of-sale (POS) platform for Genius to serve merchants of all sizes, per a press release. The platform can run as a countertop device, customer-facing display or kiosk, or a wall mount. Launching flexible devices could help lure back merchants looking for value, especially SMBs hoping to slowly build out their POS base platform as they grow. However, economic uncertainty is tamping down consumer spending—and hitting hardest the small- and medium-sized businesses that are most likely to seek out modular solutions. Pairing AI software solutions with customizable POS platforms could help entice merchants that want to automate the busywork from their businesses and reclaim time for critical tasks.

Holiday shoppers are stressed and overwhelmed, per Accenture’s 19th Annual Holiday Shopping Survey. And this is leading to lower conversion rates: 85% of consumers are likely to abandon their carts due to frustration or indecision, according to the survey. To best meet customer needs quickly, retailers can partner with providers like Checkout.com on its one-click checkout solution Flow Remember Me or PayPal-owned Honey as it integrates AI-powered product recommendations based on users’ conversations with chatbots.