Axios Live: AI shopping takes off as trust concerns linger
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Cantor Fitzgerald's John Clark (left) and Mastercard's Sherri Haymond at the Oct. 18 event. Photo: Steven Joseph Fogarty for Axios
LAS VEGAS — Digital agents are researching and purchasing products for consumers, but questions remain around security, authorization and liability, commerce leaders said at an Axios Live roundtable at Money20/20.
Why it matters: Merchants and financial institutions are under pressure to establish safeguards that protect shoppers while still enabling a seamless buying experience.
Axios' Dan Primack and Lucinda Shen moderated the Oct. 18 roundtable discussion. The event was sponsored by Synchrony.
5 big takeaways from the conversation:
- "A significant amount of commerce" will become "at least agent-assisted or initiated," predicted Sherri Haymond, Mastercard executive vice president and head of digital commercialization, pointing to how consumers could use the technology to look for the best price on a specific product.
- One-off transactions are already building trust with consumers easing into the habit of using agents to make purchases, Stripe Link business lead Jay Shah said. This includes big-ticket items like travel.
- Assistants integrated with infrastructure "will win the consumer agent battle," said Blue Language Labs CEO Zor Gorelov. "Real traction" will come from assistants that can anticipate needs by being integrated with calendars, emails and payments, he added.
- Permission is a bottleneck, Oscilar co-founder and CEO Neha Narkhede said. This will continue to be an obstacle until there's a process to establish whether agents should be making purchases or who is liable if something goes wrong, she added.
- "A catastrophic event of loss" may trigger greater regulation, said Natural CEO Kahlil Lalji. In the meantime, organizations and leaders can get clear on how they plan on operating their businesses within the policy and governance frameworks that do exist
The bottom line: There are many opportunities to wield AI in commerce, but leaders aiming to do it well are prioritizing the user experience, trust, and clarity on governance.
Content from the sponsor's remarks:
In opening remarks, Rachel Moore, Synchrony SVP of agentic commerce, payments and incubation, said AI is touching every corner of the industry and bringing segments together.
- "Commerce is changing with AI … [and] every part of the customer journey is changing. From discovery, to how someone is making decisions, how commerce is ultimately happening. Synchrony sits at a really interesting intersection of merchants meeting consumers meeting payments and technology."
