Walmart has reported that the conversion rates for purchases made directly through ChatGPT were significantly lower, at three times less effective than transactions that redirected users to its website. This finding raises questions about the viability of agentic commerce as a replacement for conventional shopping experiences.
In November, Walmart introduced around 200,000 products via OpenAI's Instant Checkout feature, allowing users to finalize purchases without leaving the ChatGPT interface. However, Daniel Danker, Walmart's Executive Vice President of Product and Design, noted that the in-chat purchase conversion rate was only one-third of that achieved through traditional click-out methods. He described the experience as “unsatisfying” and indicated that Walmart would be moving away from this approach.
As a result, Walmart plans to integrate its own chatbot, Sparky, into ChatGPT, enabling users to log in, synchronize their shopping carts, and complete transactions within Walmart’s ecosystem. This change aligns with OpenAI's recent decision to phase out Instant Checkout in favor of merchant-managed app-based checkout systems. A similar integration is expected to launch with Google Gemini next month.