AI is moving upstream, showing up earlier in the decision-making process and increasingly shaping what happens next.

• Among consumers who use AI while shopping, these tools already appear in an average of 42% of shopping experiences, according to a new EMARKETER and Publicis Commerce report.
• And for nearly 1 in 5 shoppers, the journey now starts inside an AI assistant.

Instead of browsing from scratch, shoppers are immediately served curated options, side-by-side comparisons, and synthesized recommendations, often within seconds. It’s no surprise, then, that about a third (32.7%) say AI helps them make decisions faster.

But speed is only part of the story. The bigger shift is influence.

Almost half (49.0%) of AI-assisted shoppers say they would consider a different brand or product if an AI assistant recommended an alternative. When switching feels easy and low-risk, brand loyalty starts to loosen.

You can see this shift more clearly in how consumers define AI’s role.

• Nearly half (48.7%) see it as a research helper, while another 23.3% view it as a recommendation engine.
• But a meaningful share has moved further: 13.5% treat AI as a co-decision-maker, and 14.5% rely on it as the primary decision-maker.

Those who lean on AI tend to move faster, engage more directly with recommendations, and act more quickly. At the same time, they are also more aware of its limitations, especially bias.

That tension runs throughout the data: While over half (52.4%) of respondents believe AI recommendations are generally accurate and in their best interest, about two-thirds also think these tools show at least some bias.

Consumers are more likely to rely on AI when the stakes feel lower or the need is more immediate, such as familiar products, lower-priced items, or urgent purchases.

But AI’s role is not limited to low-stakes decisions. More than half (51.1%) of respondents say they are likely to use it for high-consideration purchases like electronics, signaling its growing influence even in complex decisions.

Still, the path to purchase has not fully shifted into AI environments.

• 60.2% of respondents do their own research after receiving an AI recommendation, and another 36.6% ask follow-up questions.
• Transactions still largely happen in retailer-owned environments, with mobile apps accounting for 36.0% of purchases, websites for 32.6%, and physical stores for 13.7%.

For now, AI is shaping the journey upstream, guiding discovery, narrowing consideration, and nudging brand choice before a shopper ever reaches a retailer’s site.

But there are early signs that could change. Nearly 1 in 10 respondents say they have completed a purchase directly within an AI interface. It is still a small share, but it points to where things may be headed as platforms experiment with more integrated commerce experiences.

Read the full report

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