{"id":3722669,"date":"2026-05-12T04:00:23","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T08:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/?p=3722669"},"modified":"2026-05-11T20:20:58","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T00:20:58","slug":"shoppers-are-ready-for-ai-to-steer-the-cart-not-swipe-the-card","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/news\/retail\/2026\/shoppers-are-ready-for-ai-to-steer-the-cart-not-swipe-the-card\/","title":{"rendered":"Shoppers Are Ready for AI to Steer the Cart, Not Swipe the Card"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s certainly nice to imagine a digital assistant that can take over the weekly grocery trip, but not if that assistant is going to steal the shopper\u2019s identity and drain their bank account.<\/p><div\r\n\tid=\"article-paywall-overlay\"\r\n\tclass=\"d-none\"\r\n>\r\n\t<div id=\"article-paywall-content\" class=\"my-4\">\r\n\t\t\n<div class=\"wpcf7 no-js\" id=\"wpcf7-f2699550-o1\" lang=\"en-US\" dir=\"ltr\" data-wpcf7-id=\"2699550\">\n<div 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the form to unlock this article and enjoy unlimited free access to all PYMNTS content \u2014 no additional logins required.\n\t<\/p>\n\t<div id='registrationContainer' class='container px-0'>\n\t\t<div class=\"row\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n\t\t\t\t<p><span class=\"wpcf7-form-control-wrap\" data-name=\"firstName\"><input size=\"40\" maxlength=\"400\" class=\"wpcf7-form-control wpcf7-text wpcf7-validates-as-required form-control border-secondary\" id=\"firstName\" aria-required=\"true\" aria-invalid=\"false\" placeholder=\"First Name*\" value=\"\" type=\"text\" name=\"firstName\" \/><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n\t\t\t\t<p><span class=\"wpcf7-form-control-wrap\" data-name=\"lastName\"><input size=\"40\" maxlength=\"400\" class=\"wpcf7-form-control wpcf7-text wpcf7-validates-as-required form-control border-secondary\" id=\"lastName\" aria-required=\"true\" aria-invalid=\"false\" placeholder=\"Last Name*\" value=\"\" 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\/>\n\t\t\t<input class=\"wpcf7-form-control wpcf7-hidden\" value=\"\" type=\"hidden\" name=\"email\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t<p><span class=\"wpcf7-form-control-wrap\" data-name=\"newsLetterChoice\"><span class=\"wpcf7-form-control wpcf7-checkbox me-1\" id=\"checkNewsletter\"><span class=\"wpcf7-list-item first last\"><input type=\"checkbox\" name=\"newsLetterChoice[]\" value=\"yes\" checked=\"checked\" \/><span class=\"wpcf7-list-item-label\">yes<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"small\">Subscribe to our daily newsletter, PYMNTS Today.<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<p class=\"small lh-base\" style=\"font-size:.9rem;\">By completing this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from PYMNTS and to the sharing of your information with our sponsor, if applicable, in accordance with our <a class=\"fw-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/pymnts-com-develop.go-vip.net\/privacy-policy\/\">Privacy Policy<\/a> and <a class=\"fw-bold\" href=\"https:\/\/pymnts-com-develop.go-vip.net\/terms-conditions\/\">Terms and Conditions<\/a>.\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<p><input id='hiddenPath' type='hidden' name='path' value='' \/><input type='hidden' name='userDeviceId' id='userDeviceId' \/><input type='hidden' name='pageTitle' id='pageTitle' \/>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t<div id='formButtonRow' class='container mt-1 px-0'>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p><input class=\"wpcf7-form-control wpcf7-submit has-spinner btn btn-dark text-uppercase py-2 px-5 small\" id=\"theSubmitButton\" type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"post_id\" value=\"3722669\" \/><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"source\" value=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/news\/retail\/2026\/shoppers-are-ready-for-ai-to-steer-the-cart-not-swipe-the-card\/\" \/><p style=\"display: none !important;\" class=\"akismet-fields-container\" data-prefix=\"_wpcf7_ak_\"><label>&#916;<textarea name=\"_wpcf7_ak_hp_textarea\" cols=\"45\" rows=\"8\" maxlength=\"100\"><\/textarea><\/label><input type=\"hidden\" id=\"ak_js_1\" name=\"_wpcf7_ak_js\" value=\"204\"\/><script>document.getElementById( \"ak_js_1\" ).setAttribute( \"value\", ( new Date() ).getTime() );<\/script><\/p><div class=\"wpcf7-response-output\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/div>\n<\/form>\n<\/div>\n\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"article-paywall-hidden-content\">\r\n\t\n<p>New research from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/study_posts\/the-ai-on-ramp-data-shows-how-everyday-tasks-build-consumer-habits\">latest edition<\/a> of PYMNTS Intelligence\u2019s exclusive Agentic AI Report shows that Americans are increasingly comfortable letting artificial intelligence (AI) take over their carts. More than half of U.S. consumers already use AI in the buying process, making it the most popular use case for the technology today.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"datawrapper-chart-FCHJV\" style=\"border: none;\" title=\"AI task groups over time\" src=\"https:\/\/datawrapper.dwcdn.net\/FCHJV\/1\/\" width=\"732\" height=\"570\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" aria-label=\"Line chart\" data-external=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s not just about asking AI what to buy anymore. Many consumers are open to letting autonomous agents handle the entire transaction. Nearly half say they\u2019d consider letting an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/study_posts\/from-assistive-to-agentic-ai-consumers-wade-into-autonomous-commerce\/\">AI assistant<\/a> shop for groceries, and 44% would trust one to pick out gifts, according to previous PYMNTS Intelligence research. The appeal is obvious: offloading time-consuming decisions and errands to software that never gets tired.<\/p>\n<p>That convenience can be a slippery slope.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cConsumers will be lured by the simplicity of having a machine shop for them or do difficult planning tasks like travel and big-ticket purchases,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/ron-zayas-1a80a239a\/\">Ron Zayas<\/a>, CEO of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/ironwall.com\/\">Ironwall by Incogni<\/a>, said in an interview. \u201cEach step along the process will seem like a logical next step: \u2018as long as I am researching this for you, would you like me to purchase it for you?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Agentic commerce has come a long way in the last year. In January, Google launched its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/google\/2026\/google-debuts-universal-protocol-for-agentic-commerce\/\">Universal Commerce Protocol<\/a>, an open-source standard designed by the giant tech company and industry partners, to enable AI-driven, agentic commerce. It has now introduced agentic commerce through <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/artificial-intelligence-2\/2026\/google-launches-agentic-commerce-with-etsy-and-wayfair\/\">Etsy and Wayfair<\/a>, with plans to add Shopify, Target and Walmart.<\/p><div id=\"pymnt-529503822\" class=\"pymnt-content pymnt-entity-placement\" style=\"margin-top: 50px;\"><p style=\"text-align:center\">Advertisement: Scroll to Continue<\/p><script async type=\"text\/javascript\" id=\"dianomi_context_script\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dianomi.com\/js\/contextfeed.js\"><\/script> \r\n<div class=\"dianomi_context\" data-dianomi-context-id=\"4329\"><\/div><\/div>\n<p>However, major concerns still linger. Agentic commerce involves handing over a lot of information to the AI platforms and payment companies supporting those transactions. For agents to be able to make purchases, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/artificial-intelligence-2\/2026\/visa-aims-to-give-businesses-agentic-commerce-on-ramp\/\">Visas<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/artificial-intelligence-2\/2026\/american-express-to-back-purchases-made-by-customers-ai-agents\/\">American Expresses<\/a> of the world need to know a lot about the people they\u2019re acting on behalf of. Shoppers have their doubts. Almost all (95%) consumers have at least <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/tracker_posts\/agents-of-change-how-agentic-ai-is-redefining-commerce\/\">one concern<\/a> about agentic commerce. Those worries range from simple mistakes like buying the wrong item to higher-stakes issues like identity theft.<\/p>\n<p>Those anxieties aren\u2019t coming out of nowhere. People had enough security concerns even before agentic AI was introduced. In fact, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/study\/financial-scams-and-consumer-trust\/\">PYMNTS Intelligence<\/a> finds that nearly one in five consumers have been scammed in the last five years. That figure is even higher for the most digitally connected generations: 22% of Generation Z and 24% of millennials. Now, agents come with a whole new set of risks.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMany AI systems rely on multiple APIs and vendors,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/davidbhoppe\/\">David B. Hoppe<\/a>, the founder and managing partner at technology-focused Gamma Law, told PYMNTS. \u201cEach integration increases vulnerabilities and complicates accountability for breaches or misuse \u2026 Even \u2018anonymized\u2019 data becomes highly identifiable when combined across sources, enabling granular profiling that may [lead to] unfair targeting concerns.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Consumers and merchants alike could grant agents unprecedented access. And if that access goes unchecked, the possibilities are concerning.<\/p>\n<p>Still, many people <em>want <\/em>to trust agentic commerce, so they\u2019re willing to negotiate. The technology promises to take the work of shopping off people\u2019s hands, an appealing proposition for anyone who\u2019s had to navigate their way through a department store during the holiday season or spend precious minutes of their lives deciding between nearly identical jars of pasta sauce. Half of U.S. consumers say they\u2019d trust agentic commerce if they knew that there were <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/tracker_posts\/agents-of-change-how-agentic-ai-is-redefining-commerce\/\">fraud protections<\/a> in place.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cConsumers are pragmatic and will trade data for a time-back ROI, but only if they feel in control,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/albert-roux-2b93533\/\">Albert Roux<\/a>, executive vice president of product and identity at <a href=\"https:\/\/microblink.com\/\">Microblink<\/a>, told PYMNTS.<\/p>\n<p>Payment giants are paying close attention to those trust concerns. Take Visa, for instance. The company recently helped design <a href=\"https:\/\/stripe.com\/\">Stripe<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/tempo.xyz\/\">Tempo<\/a>\u2019s Machine Payments Protocol (MPP) and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/visa\/2026\/visa-scales-agentic-commerce-through-stripe-protocol-collaboration\/\">extended<\/a> that protocol to card payments on its global network and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visaacceptance.com\/en-us\/solutions\/visa-acceptance-platform.html\">Visa Acceptance Platform<\/a> in an effort to provide secure autonomous agent payments. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/rubail\/\">Rubail Birwadker<\/a>,\u00a0Visa\u2019s senior vice president and global head of growth, recently explained in an interview with\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/\">PYMNTS<\/a>\u00a0CEO\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/karenwebsterboston\/\">Karen Webster<\/a> that the technology needs \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/news\/artificial-intelligence\/2025\/visa-maps-a-path-to-agentic-commerce-that-feels-familiar-and-safe\/\">continuous validation<\/a> of agent behavior\u201d from humans to get people to trust it.<\/p>\n<p>Similarly, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanexpress.com\/\">American Express<\/a>\u00a0chairman and CEO\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/ir.americanexpress.com\/governance-and-corporate-responsibility\/executive-committee-and-directors\/person-details\/default.aspx?ItemId=83cfacb0-90b4-414c-823b-222f743ca112\">Stephen J. Squeri<\/a>\u00a0wrote in a\u00a0March <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/credit-cards\/2026\/american-express-leverages-service-and-security-to-win-agentic-commerce\/\">letter to shareholders<\/a> that having the right security measures in place is \u201cof paramount importance\u201d for agentic commerce to succeed. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mastercard.com\/us\/en.html\">Mastercard<\/a>, for its part, has partnered with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/\">PayPal<\/a>\u00a0to provide secure, verified agentic AI <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/artificial-intelligence-2\/2025\/mastercard-and-paypal-make-trust-the-core-of-agentic-commerce\/\">payment options<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The goal is to ensure that even if a machine is making the purchase, there\u2019s still oversight, verification and accountability behind the scenes. The stakes are high. People are just starting to form their opinions about agentic commerce, and trust, once broken, is hard to rebuild.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf AI is just a more sophisticated way to target and sell, that will erode trust quickly,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.trulioo.com\/\">Trulioo<\/a> CTO <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/hal-lonas-4555b1\/\">Hal Lonas<\/a> explained to PYMNTS. \u201cThe real opportunity, and the line consumers will draw, is whether the agent is actually solving problems for them or just creating new ones.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>At PYMNTS Intelligence, we work with businesses to uncover insights that fuel intelligent, data-driven discussions on changing customer expectations, a more connected economy and the strategic shifts necessary to achieve outcomes. With rigorous research methodologies and unwavering commitment to objective\u00a0quality, we offer trusted data to grow your business. As our partner, you\u2019ll have access to our diverse team of PhDs, researchers, data analysts, number crunchers, subject matter veterans and editorial experts.<\/em><\/p>\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>\r\n\twindow.pymntsAllowedArticleCount = 1;\r\n\twindow.pymntsPostID = 3722669;\r\n<\/script>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s certainly nice to imagine a digital assistant that can take over the weekly grocery trip, but not if that assistant is going to steal the shopper\u2019s identity and drain their bank account. Get the Full Story Complete the form to unlock this article and enjoy unlimited free access to all PYMNTS content \u2014 no [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3724371,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","pymnts_footnotes":""},"categories":[4089],"tags":[163736,9498,19817,13328,9206,67958,67601,133069],"class_list":["post-3722669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-retail","tag-agentic-commerce","tag-ai","tag-digital-transformation","tag-featured-news","tag-news","tag-payments-intelligence","tag-pymnts-intelligence","tag-pymnts-news"],"acf":{"suggested_titles":""},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.2 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - 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