Meta Platforms Inc. (META.US) is testing a shopping research feature within its artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot, positioning it as a competitor to similar tools from OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's (GOOGL.US) Gemini. The feature allows users to request product recommendations and is currently available to a limited number of Meta AI web users in the United States. The chatbot displays products in a carousel format, accompanied by details such as brand, official website, and price, along with bullet-point explanations for the recommendations. A Meta spokesperson confirmed the shopping tool is in the testing phase but declined to provide further details.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has set the company's goal on developing "personal super intelligence," competing with popular chatbots like ChatGPT and Gemini, which have also integrated e-commerce functions to pursue monetization. During the January earnings call, Zuckerberg stated that the company would launch several new products in the coming months, showcasing Meta's ability to deliver "uniquely personalized experiences" based on user history, interests, content, and social connections.
In testing, Meta's AI chatbot customizes recommendations using available user data, such as geographic location and inferred gender from names, where applicable. Currently, the chatbot does not support checkout or payment functions, but users can click on merchant links for further browsing. When asked whether the chatbot would earn promotional commissions or prioritize brands advertising on Facebook and Instagram, Meta's spokesperson did not respond. However, Zuckerberg's comments in January may offer a clue: he indicated that while the company's current advertising business helps merchants reach interested audiences, future "new intelligent shopping tools will enable users to precisely find specific products that best match their needs from the platform's merchant database."
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