Shopify Opens More Than 1 Billion Products to AI Shopping Agents

Shopify is opening access to a catalog of more than 1 billion products for third-party AI agents, giving automated assistants a way to search merchant listings as retailers set different rules for AI-led shopping.

An assistant could compare prices and product options for someone looking for a particular item, then offer a recommendation for the shopper to approve. For example, a customer might request running shoes under $150 and review the agent’s suggestions before deciding whether to buy.

Amazon took a more restrictive approach in September, blocking Meta’s Muse shopping agent over transparency and security concerns. Nic Cruz Patane said Amazon had blocked his Grok Bot from placing orders.

The two approaches put product discovery at the center of the debate over AI-assisted shopping: Shopify is opening its catalog to outside agents, while Amazon has restricted access by some automated shopping tools.