Salesforce says almost one in five shoppers across the US, UK, Canada and Australia now turns to AI first when deciding what to buy. Its new research also forecasts $75.8 billion in AI-influenced Cyber Week spending, while finding that shoppers are using agents to compare prices and products more readily than to make purchases for them.
Salesforce Watch analysis
What happened
The figures come from a Salesforce survey of more than 2,500 shoppers, alongside the company’s own projections. Salesforce says AI-driven recommendations are expected to influence more than one in five holiday orders, and traffic from AI tools to ecommerce sites has risen 104% year on year.
The survey suggests shoppers are still keeping a hand on the tiller: 31% have tried a personal AI agent, but only 19% of those users have let one check out. Three-quarters of shoppers say they are not interested in letting a personal agent make purchases for them. Salesforce published the findings in its holiday shopping report.
Why it matters
AI is becoming a shop window and comparison assistant before it becomes a cashier. For retailers, the findings point to a practical challenge: product details, prices and stock information need to be clear and current enough for an assistant to use, while the eventual customer still wants to trust what it recommends.
Salesforce’s figures are a survey and company forecast, not a census of every shopper or a guarantee of spending. Even so, the gap between people using agents for advice and letting them buy is useful: discovery is moving faster than delegated checkout.
Our read
The meaningful shift may be where shopping begins, not who presses the final button. Retailers should make their product information easy for AI tools to interpret, but resist the urge to treat a forecast as proof that shoppers are ready to hand over their wallets. Apparently the algorithm may choose the stand mixer; the human still wants to inspect the returns policy.
What to watch
- Whether AI referrals continue to grow as the holiday shopping season progresses.
- Whether shoppers become more willing to let agents complete purchases.
- Whether retailers improve product data, pricing and stock information for AI-led discovery.
Discussion spark: Should retailers prioritise making products easy for AI agents to discover, or focus on earning shoppers’ trust before those agents are allowed to buy?
Sources and evidence
- New Data: Holiday Shoppers Will Rely on Agents. Retailers Must Be Ready. (12 November 2026, 18:00 UTC)
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