Executive Summary
AI-assisted shopping has crossed the majority threshold. In early 2026, MetafyAI surveyed 4,200 US and UK consumers who purchased a product online in the previous 30 days. The results confirm what many brands have been sensing: AI search engines are rapidly replacing the traditional "Google then Amazon" funnel.
The AI Engines Driving Purchases
ChatGPT leads as the primary AI shopping assistant, used by 52% of AI-assisted shoppers. Perplexity comes second at 28%, particularly strong in electronics and home appliances. Google's AI Overview (formerly SGE) accounts for 19%, while Gemini Advanced is growing fastest among Gen Z.
- ChatGPT: 52% share — strongest in apparel, beauty, and general merchandise
- Perplexity: 28% share — index-heavy categories (tech, home, outdoor)
- Google AI Overview: 19% share — product discovery in mid-funnel
- Gemini Advanced: 14% and growing — fashion, lifestyle, Gen Z demographics
- Claude: 8% share — B2B and high-consideration purchases
How AI Selects Products to Recommend
The most striking finding: AI engines cite structured product data 3.4× more often than unstructured page text. Products with clean schema markup, clear feature attributes, and consistent catalog data were 78% more likely to be named by name in an AI response.
What makes a product "AI-recommendable"?
- Complete product schema with all relevant attributes (material, size, compatibility, etc.)
- Rich, factual descriptions — not marketing copy, but specific claims
- Consistent brand and product name across all channels (website, Amazon, Google Shopping)
- Positive sentiment in third-party review content visible to AI crawlers
- Clear differentiators vs. competitors stated in natural language
The Purchase Funnel Is Compressing
With traditional search, the average path from awareness to purchase was 4.7 touchpoints over 3.2 days. For AI-assisted purchases, our data shows 1.9 touchpoints over 0.8 days. AI answers product questions, compares alternatives, and builds enough confidence for a purchase decision — all in a single conversation.
Category Breakdown
Electronics & Tech
The highest AI adoption category at 71%. Shoppers use AI to compare specs, assess compatibility, and understand technical trade-offs. Perplexity dominates here with 44% share thanks to its citation-heavy format that shoppers trust for technical decisions.
Beauty & Personal Care
Growing fastest — AI adoption up 112% YoY. ChatGPT dominates with ingredient analysis, skin type matching, and "what's comparable to [luxury brand] but affordable" queries. Brands with well-structured ingredient and benefit data are winning disproportionately.
Home & Furniture
High-consideration, long funnel category where AI provides the most value. Shoppers ask AI to help visualize, compare dimensions, and check compatibility with existing furniture. Products with rich dimension data, material information, and clear assembly details get cited most.
Apparel & Fashion
Emerging strongly — 49% AI adoption. Queries are style-based ("what jeans work for an apple body shape") and occasion-based ("outfit ideas for a summer wedding under $200"). Semantic product tagging is critical for this category.
The Brands Winning in AI Search
Our analysis of 2,400 product categories found that the brands appearing most often in AI recommendations share three characteristics: highly structured product data, consistent cross-channel representation, and active monitoring of their AI citation rate.
Recommendations for Brands
- Audit your AI visibility: run your top 20 product queries in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini today
- Complete your product schema: every attribute gap is a citation opportunity you are missing
- Write factual descriptions: replace marketing language with specific, verifiable claims
- Standardize product names and brand representation across all sales channels
- Monitor AI citation trends weekly — the landscape is shifting faster than traditional SEO
- Invest in review generation: sentiment in third-party reviews directly influences AI recommendations
Methodology
MetafyAI surveyed 4,200 US and UK online shoppers aged 18–65 who made at least one online purchase in November or December 2025. Surveys were conducted online in January 2026. Data was weighted to be representative by age, gender, region, and household income. AI citation analysis was conducted on a separate dataset of 2,400 product categories using proprietary AI monitoring infrastructure.