Tech
PayPal wants you to do holiday shopping through an AI chatbot
Summary
- PayPal now powers direct in-chat checkout on Perplexity for select major retailers.
- Integration keeps payments in-chat using PayPal’s identity and buyer/seller protections.
- I’d still recommend doing your own checkout — AI can err, and PayPal protection isn’t a full fix.
AI has matured a lot, and it wouldn’t be right not to recognize it. But it also makes the occasional mistake. And when it comes to money, you probably don’t want mistakes. So maybe steer clear of Perplexity this Black Friday season.
PayPal has officially announced the implementation of a direct checkout integration within the AI chatbot Perplexity. This new feature allows you to execute purchases from select major retailers without navigating away from the chat interface.
Under the new system, PayPal works as the underlying commerce engine for Perplexity’s revamped shopping interface. Previously, AI search tools provided links to external vendor sites; this integration allows the transaction to occur entirely within the AI’s answer engine. The system utilizes PayPal’s existing infrastructure for identity verification, purchase protection, and seller protection. By keeping the checkout process within the chat window, the companies aim to reduce the friction typically associated with mobile web checkout flows.
At launch, the functionality supports real-time catalog browsing and direct checkout for a roster of high-profile merchants, including Abercrombie & Fitch, Ashley Furniture, Fabletics, Adorama, and Newegg. PayPal has indicated that further merchant adoption is expected in the coming months. And PayPal says that merchants have a low barrier to entry if they do want to check this out. It allows merchant product catalogs to become instantly discoverable within Perplexity’s search results, and it enables merchants to accept payments directly on the Perplexity platform using their existing PayPal configurations.
Neither PayPal nor Perplexity take payments from users. Instead, PayPal acts as a bridge, ensuring the retailer maintains direct control over the customer relationship and receives payment directly.
Personally, I’m not sure we’re at the point yet where you should use AI for shopping at all. Sure, it can help you discover items, but AI can still make mistakes. Imagine it messes some stuff up during the checkout process. Maybe it checks you out for the wrong item, or it charges you extra money. Tragic. You still have PayPal protection in that case, but you should probably nonetheless do your whole checkout process yourself. It’s easier and it will save you time (and more importantly, money).
Source: PayPal
