AI checkouts challenge brands’ customer control

Brands face rising pressure to retain control as agent-led commerce accelerates.

Chat-based checkout and AI-driven shopping agents are set to transform how consumers buy online, raising urgent questions for retailers seeking to maintain control over customer relationships and commercial outcomes. As conversational commerce becomes more embedded across platforms, experts warn that brands must adapt quickly to avoid losing visibility and influence in the purchasing journey.

Theo Spyrides, Head of Product at Primer, said the shift reflects accelerating consumer behaviour patterns already seen across social platforms. “Chat-based checkout will allow merchants or customers to discover, decide and pay without switching channels,” he said, noting that embedded commerce on environments like TikTok has primed shoppers for this next phase.

While the channel will not replace all online shopping, Spyrides believes merchants must continue offering differentiated experiences. “I don't envisage that all consumers will make every commerce journey through these new chat environments,” he said, adding that best-in-class platforms will remain crucial for premium segments.

Johann Suchon, Senior Vice President for Consumer Acquisition and Engagement, Asia Pacific at Mastercard, highlighted the scale of the coming shift. “We estimate that by 2030, more than 25% of the whole e-commerce volume will be shifted to agentic e-commerce,” he said. He added that the appeal lies in blending digital convenience with elements of offline shopping, such as interacting with an “educated friend who knows the products very well.”

Suchon explained that companies are moving through stages of adaptation, beginning with feeding agents existing data assets and optimising digital engagement tools. Ultimately, he said, brands will need their own agents, adding that loyalty programmes and aggregated first- and third-party data will be critical in future “agent to agent negotiation.”

Payment control will remain essential to brand influence, Spyrides said. “The one thing brands will always try and probably need to control is the payment experience,” he noted, warning that AI agents could accelerate consumer switching if the checkout flow falters.

Suchon added that brands must prepare with clean data, real-time API architecture and consistent customer experiences across channels. “The challenge for the brand would be to make sure… that the brands are providing consistent experience, a consistent narrative to the consumer,” he said.