Amazon has begun testing a text-based shopping service with a select group of US customers, allowing them to place orders through Alexa for Shopping, its AI-powered shopping agent. The service will also feature Sponsored Products advertisements among the recommendations sent to users, Digiday reports.
Invited customers can connect their phone numbers and interact with the agent through text messages using everyday language. They can ask it to reorder previously purchased products, create grocery baskets from recipe photographs or find gifts based on specific requirements, including delivery timelines.
According to Digiday, Alexa for Shopping can search for products, compare options, add items to shopping baskets and complete purchases when instructed. An optional auto-buy feature allows the agent to make purchases automatically when a product reaches a price specified by the customer.
The service also maintains continuity across text conversations, the Amazon app, its website and Alexa-enabled devices. Amazon plans to expand access to millions of additional customers in the coming weeks, while others can join a waiting list.
Sponsored Products advertisements will appear during the product discovery stage, when the agent presents customers with a selection of options. Digiday reports that these placements are currently free for advertisers. However, purchases made automatically by the agent will not carry advertisements.
Amazon told Digiday that more than 400 million customers had used Alexa for Shopping over the past 12 months, while engagement with its agentic shopping features had increased more than eightfold since January.
Alexa for Shopping replaced Amazon’s Rufus shopping assistant in May. The latest development follows the company’s decision in September to block Meta’s Muse AI shopping agent from accessing its platform, according to TechCrunch.
Amazon has yet to disclose when it will begin charging advertisers for the new placements, how advertising impressions will be counted within text conversations or what performance measurement and reporting tools will be available to brands.
Independent ad tech consultant Jonathan D’Sousa-Rauto told Digiday that the way impressions are defined and advertisements are measured will be important in determining whether the format delivers greater efficiency for advertisers.
