By Retail Brew Staff
less than 3 min read
Definition:
A shopping assistant is another tool to help people find and buy products. Otherwise known as a shopping agent, it takes people’s inputs and knowledge of what they do and who they are both in-store and online to find the best product fit for them. However, the online agents analyze customer information using AI models.
The origins of shopping assistants: In modern history, the term “shopping assistant” referred to staff in department stores that interact with and help customers find the items they’re looking for. Today, that definition is also used to describe AI shopping agents like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Amazon’s Rufus, and Walmart’s Sparky. These online agents are built on a more sophisticated AI system, referred to as agentic AI, which is trained to reason and act on behalf of shoppers. While this is still an evolving space, the number of AI shopping agents propping up online is rising pretty quickly. From Ralph Lauren to Ulta Beauty, brands and retailers are trying to plug AI into their retail strategies.
Shopping assistants in context: Some recent Retail Brew articles unpack what tech giants like Google and Walmart are doing with AI shopping assistants. And why agentic AI was all attendees could talk about at NRF 2026.
