Snack, beverage shoppers turning to AI agents

NEW YORK — As artificial intelligence (AI) quickly gains traction with consumers, many are entrusting AI agents to shop for snacks and beverages, according to the latest Consumer Pulse Research from Accenture.

As part of Accenture’s “Talk to My AI Agent” study that surveyed 25,000 global consumers, the 2026 Consumer Pulse Research sampled 1,518 snack and drink (non-alcoholic) respondents in 16 countries. Of those, 80% said they’re open to collaboration with an AI agent that would work with the consumer to find the best option. 

But these snack and beverage consumers are willing to go even further with AI agents, Accenture found. Sixty-eight percent indicated they would allow task execution, in which AI handles specific commerce tasks at the consumer’s request. Also, 30% are open to delegated decision-making – in which AI chooses what to buy, with the consumer making the payment – and 8% would permit autonomous purchasing that lets the AI agent make the transaction independently, with guardrails set by the consumer.

“AI agents are becoming the go-to discovery model for many consumers, helping them find snacks and drinks that better match the healthier, more budget-conscious or higher-quality version of themselves they aspire to be,” said Kath Gramling, global consumer goods, retail and travel lead for global business consultancy Accenture. “As we saw in our research, 63% of snacks and drinks consumers would now instruct an AI agent to shop for their ‘idealized self,’ showing a clear shift in how everyday purchases are discovered, chosen and consumed.”

Consumers’ trust in AI agents has advanced, in part, as they’ve turned to these tools to help reduce decision-making complexity, Accenture noted. Fifty percent of weekly AI users said they trust agents’ recommendations for snacks and drinks – in fact, 74% reported they would trust an AI agent more than their best friend to make a purchase, the research revealed. When instructing an AI agent on which snacks and drinks brands to buy, 45% of those surveyed prioritized value, while 37% put quality at the top of the list. 

Similarly, 31% of snack and beverage consumers said generative AI lowers decision stress during their shopping journeys. Snacks and drinks consumers with high decision stress are 1.3 times as likely (85% versus 64%) to be open to an AI-powered personal shopper.

“Consumers are rethinking what they want (and expect) from snacks and beverages,” Gramling said. “It is no longer just about satisfying a craving. As wellness trends and GLP-1 adoption reshapes eating and drinking habits, many shoppers are looking for products that support specific goals, whether that’s a protein bar that helps them feel fuller or a beverage that delivers energy or gut health benefits.”

“For snack and beverage brands, this raises the stakes at the moment a consumer is deciding what to put in their cart.” — Kath Gramling, Accenture

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| Photo: ©MAKSYM YEMELYANOV – STOCK.ADOBE.COM

For snacks and drinks recommendations, gen AI has become one of the fastest-growing sources, according to the study. Forty-eight percent of the snack and beverage respondents identified as weekly users of gen AI – 1.9 times more than in 2025 – and almost two-thirds of active users said gen AI makes them feel “seen, heard and understood.” Large language models (LLMs), a form of gen AI, are the No. 2 snacks and drinks discovery channel for weekly AI users, Accenture said.

“For snack and beverage brands, this raises the stakes at the moment a consumer is deciding what to put in their cart,” Gramling noted. “AI agents are introducing shoppers to new products, reducing decision stress by more than 30% and even steering consumers away from long-term favorites if another option better matches their goals. While 58% of consumers would tell an AI agent which brands to consider when purchasing snacks and drinks, 36% of behaviorally loyal consumers would allow an agent to switch from a favorite brand for a better fit.”

Other key findings from Accenture’s full global AI study include the following:

• 61% of respondents want an AI agent that shops multiple grocery retailers on their behalf, splitting their baskets.

• 71% of those polled expect gen AI to influence at least half of their spending decisions over the next 12 months.

• 87% of consumers agree that AI will impact the role of physical stores, with 31% expecting stores to become more important for experiences.

“As loyalty becomes more conditional,” Gramling said, “the brands coming out ahead are making claims, ingredients and quality easier to verify, compare and recommend, while still protecting the human side of snacking (taste, emotion, identity) that consumers aren’t willing to delegate.”