TLDR: Adobe Analytics data reveals a significant surge in generative AI-powered shopping traffic, increasing by 3,300% year-over-year during the 2025 Prime Day event. Consumers are increasingly using AI chat services and browsers as shopping assistants, influencing purchasing decisions across various product categories and contributing to record online sales.
New data from Adobe Analytics highlights a dramatic shift in e-commerce consumer behavior, with generative AI-powered shopping experiencing a substantial rise during the 2025 Prime Day event. According to Adobe, traffic to U.S. retail sites originating from generative AI sources, such as large language models like ChatGPT, AI-powered search engines like Perplexity, and other virtual assistants and web browsers, surged by an impressive 3,300% year-over-year during the July 8-11 period. This growth underscores the increasing role of artificial intelligence as a shopping assistant for consumers seeking deals and specific product information.
While AI-driven traffic still represents a modest portion compared to established channels like paid search and email, its rapid expansion demonstrates its growing influence on online shopping. Consumers are actively embracing these AI tools for various shopping tasks, including conducting product research, receiving personalized recommendations, identifying deals, generating gift ideas, discovering unique products, and creating shopping lists. Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, noted that online shoppers are recognizing the benefits of AI-powered chat interfaces, as they streamline the process of obtaining information tailored to their needs.
The impact of generative AI is particularly evident in certain product categories. Adobe’s research indicates that electronics and jewelry have seen the highest conversion rates from AI-driven suggestions. Conversely, categories such as apparel, home goods, and groceries have shown lower conversion rates from AI-influenced traffic. This trend suggests that AI is becoming a powerful alternative to traditional search engines, with shoppers leveraging tools like Google’s Gemini and Anthropic’s Claude, alongside OpenAI’s ChatGPT, to find desired items and compare prices.
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Beyond the surge in AI usage, the 2025 Prime Day event, which spanned four days, set new records for overall online sales. U.S. retailers collectively generated an estimated $24.1 billion in online sales during this period. Mobile devices played a significant role, accounting for $4 billion (50.2%) of e-commerce sales on July 8 alone. Additionally, the ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ (BNPL) payment method continued its upward trend, comprising 8.1% of online orders during Prime Day, a 33.3% year-over-year growth, totaling $2.0 billion in online spend. This indicates a continued consumer preference for flexible budgeting options. The increasing relevance of AI in e-commerce has also led to discussions about new monetization strategies, with reports suggesting that OpenAI is exploring taking a share of online sales generated through product links clicked by its users.
