Google CEO Sundar Pichai says AI agents will be a big part of how we shop, Elon Musk responds

Google recently announced Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP) – an open standard developed in partnership with Shopify, Etsy, Wayfair, Target, and Walmart to enable AI agents to seamlessly communicate across shopping stages, from discovery to checkout. CEO Sundar Pichai took to microblogging platform X (formerly Twitter) to share details about UCP. “AI agents will be a big part of how we shop in the not-so-distant future. To help lay the groundwork, we partnered with Shopify, Etsy, Wayfair, Target and Walmart to create the Universal Commerce Protocol, a new open standard for agents and systems to talk to each other across every step of the shopping journey. And coming soon, UCP will power native checkout so you can buy directly on AI Mode and the Gemini app,” he wrote in an X (formerly Twitter) post.


Pichai’s post caught Elon Musk’s attention who responded to it with a one-word. “Interesting”, the Tesla CEO wrote replying to Sundar Pichai’s post.

Agentic AI in online shopping

At the National Retail Federation’s annual conference, Google revealed tech and tools for retailers to succeed in an agentic shopping era. This includes Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), a new open standard for agentic commerce that works across the entire shopping journey — from discovery and buying to post-purchase support. UCP establishes a common language for agents and systems to operate together across consumer surfaces, businesses and payment providers. So instead of requiring unique connections for every individual agent, UCP enables all agents to interact easily.


Another tool announced by the tech giant is Business Agent, a new way for shoppers to chat with brands, right on Search. It’s like a virtual sales associate that can answer product questions in a brand’s voice, enabling retailers to connect with consumers during critical shopping moments and help drive sales. Google has also introduced new ways retailers can optimize their presence based on existing data feeds and go beyond traditional keywords to include things like answers to common product questions, compatible accessories or substitutes.


Google has also announced Direct Offers – new Google Ads pilot that allows advertisers to present exclusive offers for shoppers who are ready to buy — like a special 20% off discount — directly in AI Mode.