AI tools overtake search engines for product queries in China

But social media remained the most used platform, a Mintel report found.

Artificial intelligence (AI) tools are gaining ground against traditional search engines as a source of product information in China, with 51% of internet users who have heard of AI using them for product queries, according to Mintel.

The figure was 11 percentage points higher than the 40% who used traditional search engines, whilst social media remained the most-used platform at 55%.

The findings are based on a March 2026 survey of 1,799 internet users aged 18 and above who had heard of AI.

AI tools also recorded higher usage than traditional search engines across the other categories measured by Mintel.

For diet advice, 55% of respondents used AI tools, compared with 42% for traditional search engines and 42% for social media.

AI tools were used by 56% for health and medical advice, against 44% for traditional search and 44% for social media.

Another 48% used AI for mental health advice, compared with 35% for traditional search and 45% for social media.

Mintel said AI tools had become a more common source of advice and information in China than social media or traditional search engines for some complex information needs.

Mintel’s data does not measure whether consumers would allow AI to make purchases on their behalf. The use of AI for search does not translate into willingness to let AI complete purchases.

“For brands and retailers, it is important to understand that the behaviours we are seeing in search are not, despite what many tech companies are saying, directly transferable to agentic commerce,” Mintel said.

Consumers can scrutinise and reject information from AI, whilst automated purchasing gives the technology control over a transaction.

Trust is the biggest barrier for agentic commerce to overcome, according to Mintel. Consumers are more comfortable using AI to search, compare and simplify decisions than allowing it to act on their behalf.

Agentic commerce involves AI agents moving beyond product discovery to make purchases on behalf of consumers.