AI shopping: Shopify and Google introduce standard for purchases via AI agents

The use of AI for product discovery, comparison, and purchasing is gaining significant momentum, and Shopify is strategically capitalizing on this trend. Together with Google, the company has introduced the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP): an open standard that allows AI agents to handle purchases directly with brands. The protocol operates within AI environments such as Google AI Mode, Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, and ChatGPT. Shopify announced this development during NRF 2026 and via a press release.