Shopify Sees AI Surge

Shopify has reported a significant increase in AI-driven activity on its platform. Since January, traffic to online stores originating from AI sources has increased sevenfold. Furthermore, orders resulting from AI-powered searches have seen an even more dramatic rise, increasing by a factor of eleven. This surge indicates a growing adoption of AI tools within the e-commerce landscape, with a substantial impact on consumer behaviour and sales trends.

Shopify's president, Harley Finkelstein, highlighted AI as the most significant technological shift since the internet. The company's AI assistant, Sidekick, has seen increased adoption, with over 750,000 merchants using the tool for the first time during Q3. This contributed to nearly 100 million total interactions since its launch, including $8 million worth of activity in October alone. A recent survey indicates that approximately 64% of consumers anticipate using AI in some capacity when shopping during the holiday season.

Shopify's Q3 revenue reached $2.84 billion, a 32% increase. The company's partnerships with OpenAI, Perplexity, and Microsoft Copilot are driving the 'agentic commerce' revolution. These figures suggest that AI is rapidly becoming a core component of e-commerce, driving both traffic and sales for merchants on the platform.