Ever since generative AI models emerged onto the landscape as challengers to traditional search engines, the tech titans behind LLMs have been working on how to allow users to make purchases without leaving their AI ecosystems.
In January, Google unveiled the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP) – their answer to the challenge of how to integrate the buying journey directly into Large Language Models. Just weeks later, it has been launched in earnest with the promise that it will now ‘let people buy items from online marketplaces Etsy and Wayfair without ever leaving Google’.
Powering Agentic AI Purchases
UCP is being positioned as the solution to how ‘agentic’ AI (which completes tasks more complex than, for example, answering an individual query) can directly facilitate purchases – not just through Google’s Gemini tool, but also directly through enhancements to their Chrome browser.
Developed in conjunction with ecom heavyweights including Shopify, Etsy and Walmart, UCP has subsequently won endorsements from the likes of American Express, Mastercard, Stripe and Visa.
How Does the Universal Commerce Protocol Work?
UCP is an open standard – basically a standardised framework for software and hardware that’s openly available and accessible. Commonly known examples of open standards we all use in everyday life include USB and WiFi technology.
Google describes it as “a common language for agents and systems to operate together across consumer surfaces, businesses and payment providers”. Essentially it helps commerce platforms and AI agents speak the same language, aiming to build a seamless experience for users from product discovery to decision.
What Does UCP Actually Mean for Brands?
One of the first use cases for UCP will be powering a new checkout feature on selected Google product listings, available to users via AI Mode and the Gemini app. This will allow shoppers to buy from eligible retailers without leaving Google’s ecosystem, rolling out in America first before hitting other territories.
Despite all of this taking place within AI Mode or Gemini, retailers remain “the seller of record”, with Google touting their ability to customise integration to their specific needs, promising to help capture sales and avoid the dreaded abandoned cart. On the flip side, this process has the potential to add further attribution headaches that ecom platforms can already face following the advent of GA4 and Consent Mode.
What Do You Need to Do Next?
There is a waiting list (currently open in the US only, but sure to open up to other territories soon) for brands to get in touch with Google for UCP implementation.
While we wait to see how it works in action, Google has set out a dev-focused five-point guide for integrating with the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP) to help make sure your site is ready to enable transactions directly through their AI tools
- Prepare your Google Merchant Center account, configuring all key information around shipping, returns and your product feed.
- Publish a business profile for UCP that helps Google discover your site’s business capabilities and payment options.
- Complete native checkout integration to provide a seamless checkout experience.
- Choose a path for user identification (either guest checkout or linked to an account).
- Sync the status of the order’s status, in order to confirm whether a purchase is completed.
What Happens Next in AI Commerce?
Google’s experience of building a monopoly in traditional search puts them in an incredibly strong position to drive this change in user behaviour, with Gemini growing rapidly in 2025. Meanwhile, ChatGPT retains a large user base and significant brand recognition, and OpenAI already shared its own Product Feed for ChatGPT Shopping
We still have a long way to go before AI-powered purchases begin to make a notable dent in traditional channels – but the mechanisms are being put in place to give users another option for researching and completing a purchase. It makes sense to be aware of the changes that are coming and prepare for them accordingly.
To help your brand stay one step ahead of the curve in the changing face of ecom, reach out to the team at Iff Digital for a chat about the new search landscape.