New Ecommerce Tools: May 29, 2025

This week’s rundown of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce merchants includes cross-border shipping, agentic commerce, virtual try-on, AI-powered store builders, embedded financing, fulfillment platforms, product summaries, and hosting.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants

DHL Group partners with Shopify to accelerate cross-border shipping. DHL Group has expanded its shipping partnership with Shopify. DHL now integrates with the Shopify platform, enabling sellers worldwide to access the carrier’s global network and shipping services with just a few clicks. Sellers on Shopify will no longer need to onboard a logistics provider independently, per DHL, adding that the integration helps sellers manage complex customs, legal, and administrative tasks.

DHL Group

StellarWP launches StellarSites to build and launch a WordPress site. StellarWP, a provider of solutions for WordPress, has launched StellarSites to remove the complexity of traditional WordPress setups. According to StellarWP, publishing a full-featured site is now fast and easy with pre-built templates, premium plugins, and WordPress bundled in. Features include an AI setup wizard, automatic updates, backups, and built-in optimization. Premium plugins include KadenceWP (themes), The Events Calendar, GiveWP (fundraising), LearnDash (courses), IconicWP (WooCommerce tools), and SolidWP (security).

Shopify debuts an AI-powered store builder and new AI tools. At its semi-annual “Editions” showcase earlier this month, Shopify released an AI store builder and an AI element generator for banners and other creative. The platform also upgraded Sidekick, its AI assistant, with new voice chat and screen sharing capabilities. Shopify also introduced a new public theme called “Horizon,” which includes built-in AI to assist merchants with designs.

YouLend to finance sellers on eBay. YouLend, an embedded financing platform, has entered a partnership with eBay Germany to provide sellers with flexible access to capital. YouLend and eBay Germany will provide personalized, pre-approved financing offers to sellers, enabling them to determine their eligibility before applying. Via the integration, eBay Seller Capital will support sellers in accessing up to €2 million.

YouLend

Google adds AI shopping features to search. At its annual I/O conference, Google announced several new AI features, including a new shopping experience in AI Mode with a virtual “try it on” feature and an agentic checkout experience within search. With Google Search’s AI Mode, shoppers can conversationally chat what they’re looking for, and the AI feature draws from Google’s visual images and Shopping Graph. Shoppers have the option to let the agentic agent pay autonomously.

Manhattan Associates integrates order management with Shopify. Manhattan Associates, a provider of supply chain commerce solutions, announced that a connector to its Active Order Management is now available in the Shopify App Store. Manhattan’s Order Management and Store Inventory and Fulfilment tool is available as part of Active Omni, which helps enterprises provide customer service, inventory visibility, and store fulfilment capabilities.

InfoSum integrates with Amazon Ads for first-party insights. InfoSum, a data collaboration platform, has announced a new set of integrations with Amazon Ads to enable first-party signals across Amazon DSP (Demand Side Platform) and Amazon Marketing Cloud. According to InfoSum, advertisers can push first-party signals directly to Amazon Ads using InfoSum’s secure user interface. Advertisers can also create custom audiences for targeting in Amazon DSP and leverage insights within Marketing Cloud for advanced analysis. Per InfoSum, advertisers can optimize their media strategies with real-time access to audience insights.

InfoSum

CommerceIQ launches agentic AI for ecommerce. CommerceIQ, an ecommerce platform, has released Ally, a suite of role-specific AI agents to help brands across ecommerce platforms. Trained on data across more than 1,400 retailers such as Amazon, Walmart, and Target, Ally provides ecommerce businesses with insights, performance recommendations, and instant optimizations. The suite offers a Sales Teammate, a Category Teammate to track and manage SKUs, and a Media Teammate to improve ad performance.

Worldpay partners with Yarbie for U.K. SMBs. Point-of-sale provider Yabie has partnered with payments platform Worldpay to power merchant tools within Worldpay 360, a management and payment platform for small to midsize businesses in the U.K. Available across retail, hospitality and service sectors, Yabie integrates with Worldpay’s payment hardware and technology. Worldpay 360 enables merchants to set up and access features such as inventory management, table management, and customizable receipts.

Amazon’s generative AI-powered audio feature synthesizes product summaries. Amazon is testing short-form audio summaries on select product detail pages, with AI-powered shopping experts discussing key product features. Shoppers can listen to the summaries by tapping the “Hear the highlights” button in the Amazon app. The initial test feature focuses on products that typically require consideration and is available to a subset of U.S. customers.

Bluehost launches open-source ecommerce plans for creators and businesses. Bluehost has announced its new WordPress eCommerce Hosting plans for content creators and businesses. The platform bundles hosting, plugins, and store management, including AI‑powered site building, payment integrations, paid courses and memberships, social logins, email templates, and search engine optimization tools.

Bluehost

Shopify’s New AI Tools Empower Merchants

Last week Shopify released “Editions,” its semi-annual platform update, with a slew of AI-fueled tools to ease launching, operating, and scaling a store.

For more than a decade, ecommerce platforms have competed on extensibility. The best solutions were often the most customizable and adaptable, with open APIs, app marketplaces, and flexible themes.

Extensibility

Shopify has thrived because of extensibility, the ability to tailor seemingly endless storefronts — from local boutiques to billion-dollar direct-to-consumer brands.

This flexibility has paid off for merchants, too. The combined sales of all U.S.-based Shopify merchants trail only Amazon among all nationwide retailers, ahead of eBay and Walmart.

But extensibility is now a lesser competitive edge.

The advent of generative AI has changed how people work. Shopify now inserts AI at its platform’s core, empowering merchants with speed, simplicity, and autonomy.

Horizon Theme

Consider Shopify’s new Horizon theme. It’s not merely an aesthetically trendy refresh of the Dawn theme, but the apparent foundation for a new generation of merchant experiences built around modularity, speed, and AI-assisted design.

Horizon represents a new foundation for theme-building, such as Pitch for beauty, fashion, and skincare.

At the core of Horizon is Theme Blocks, a new concept introduced to developers last fall. With drag-and-drop controls, merchants can rearrange these modular, self-contained components, such as product sliders, image galleries, promotional banners, and custom content sections.

Shopify includes a robust set of ready-made Theme Blocks but also allows for AI-generated versions.

AI can generate Shopify Theme Blocks with custom layouts.

Merchants can describe design elements such as “a banner with text overlay and fade-in animation,” and the system will generate a functioning Theme Block to match.

Adding Theme Blocks and generative AI implies that some small and mid-sized storekeepers who might have purchased a custom theme or hired a developer to tweak one can now do it themselves. It’s a significant usability gain built atop Shopify’s extensible base.

AI-Powered Store Builder

Shopify’s new AI-powered store builder turns a week-long process into something closer to a guided conversation. Rather than starting from scratch, a store owner can enter a couple of descriptive keywords. Shopify will return three layout options, each populated with images, text, and structure — ready for editing.

The builder lowers the barrier to launching a quality storefront without sacrificing aesthetics.

Sidekick

Shopify’s AI-powered assistant, Sidekick, also received usability upgrades.

Sidekick now connects multiple data sources, performs multi-step analysis, and delivers relatively more insights.

For example, Sidekick can help a merchant diagnose why sales dipped on a product line, suggest ways to re-engage a lapsed customer segment, or walk users through admin tasks via voice chat and screen sharing.

These enhancements make Sidekick less like a chatbot and more like a co-pilot, or at least the foundation for one. It is another sign that Shopify prioritizes tools that reduce complexity and give everyday merchants more control without requiring technical expertise or development resources.

Usability and Extensibility

Shopify’s “usability” updates have not reduced its extensibility. Developers can still access Liquid, APIs, and the platform’s vast app ecosystem.

Sellers can extend, customize, and integrate Horizon themes, like previous versions.

But now, non-technical merchants have a customization path via natural language, drag-and-drop editing, and AI assistance. Shopify is layering usability on top of extensibility, expanding who can build, launch, and manage a storefront.

The Trend

Shopify’s usability push likely reflects a general software and digital commerce trend.

As generative AI becomes more capable, platform value shifts away from raw flexibility and toward outcomes such as how quickly a merchant can grow without adding complexity.

It’s especially relevant as entrepreneurs bootstrap solo ventures or side hustles. These merchants need tools that lower friction and overhead.

AI tools on Shopify and elsewhere now:

The new usability mindset isn’t just for new sellers. Experienced operators can do more with fewer resources.

New Ecommerce Tools: May 22, 2025

We publish a rundown each week of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce merchants. This installment includes updates on virtual shopping, agentic commerce, analytics, dropshipping, omnichannel payments, logistics, loyalty programs, promotions, and gamification.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants

Roblox launches APIs for in-game shopping of physical items. Roblox, an online gaming platform and virtual universe, is expanding its selling capabilities with Commerce APIs and Shopify as its first integrated partner. Eligible creators and brands can sell physical products within Roblox experiences. Roblox’s new Approved Merchandiser Program connects physical shopping with virtual goods and benefits.

Roblox

Talon.One brings advanced promotions and loyalty capabilities to Shopify Enterprise. Talon.One, an incentive engine for loyalty, promotions, and gamification, has partnered with Shopify. Per Talone.One, brands that use both Talon.One and Shopify Enterprise have a single point of access to over 30 incentive tools, including personalized offers, gamified rewards, and advanced loyalty programs.

Zoho enters U.S. payments market. Technology platform Zoho has launched a unified payment solution for online businesses using multiple payment methods such as cards and ACH. The solution offers native payment capabilities within Zoho, enabling companies to manage payments directly within their existing financial workflows. Pricing for U.S. domestic cards is 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction, including Visa, Mastercard, AmEx, and Discover. Pricing for international cards is 1.5% plus the domestic card fee.

Nuvei joins the European Payments Initiative to launch Wero for ecommerce. Nuvei, a Canadian fintech company, has announced its membership in the European Payments Initiative, becoming one of the first payment services providers to enable ecommerce businesses to accept Wero, EPI’s digital wallet, in their checkouts. Wero facilitates instant account-to-account transfers using SEPA Instant Credit Transfer protocols, allowing users to send money within 10 seconds via mobile numbers, email addresses, or QR codes. Wero has attracted over 40 million users since its launch in 2024.

Nuvei’s Wero

Perplexity selects PayPal to power agentic commerce. Perplexity, an AI answer engine, has partnered with PayPal to power agentic commerce across its Pro platform. Starting this summer in the U.S., consumers can check out instantly with PayPal or Venmo when they ask Perplexity to find products, book travel, or buy tickets. The process — payment, shipping, tracking, invoicing — will occur behind the scenes with PayPal’s account linking, secure tokenized wallet, and emerging passkey checkout flows.

WooCom Made Easy achieves HIPAA compliance for healthcare integration. HIC Global Solutions, a Salesforce consulting company, has announced WooCom Made Easy, an integration software connecting WooCommerce and Salesforce, is now HIPAA compliant. The update enables healthcare providers, companies, and businesses handling sensitive patient data to sync their ecommerce and customer-management platforms without compromising privacy. All data transfers are now encrypted and compliant with HIPAA guidelines, protecting personal health information while powering real-time sync and multi-store operations.

Amplitude and Twilio launch partnership for co-selling and deeper integration. Amplitude, a digital analytics platform, has partnered with Twilio Segment, a customer data platform. Amplitude recommends Twilio Segment as an optimal customer data platform, and Twilio recommends Amplitude as the digital analytics provider of choice. Amplitude has also released ready-made dashboards that connect its platform to Twilio Segment’s CDP.

Amplitude

Kibo Commerce debuts unified marketplace and dropship solution. Kibo, a composable commerce platform, has introduced an integrated marketplace and dropship tool to help retailers and brands expand product assortments and reduce operational costs without managing physical inventory. With Kibo’s tools, clients can onboard third-party vendors using self-service registration portals or targeted invitation workflows. Kibo says its integrated tools help merchants upload product catalogs, manage pricing, and fulfill orders, while analytics help operators track KPIs, vendor performance, and gross merchandise value.

Global Payments launches Genius POS Platform. Global Payments, a provider of payment technology and software solutions, has announced the release of Genius, a point-of-sale command center for business operations. According to Global Payments, the Genius platform enables global expansion and vertical specialization at scale. It also unlocks opportunities in specialized retail segments such as age-regulated, higher education, and consumer service businesses.

Global-e and Shopify sign new multi-year strategic partnership agreement. Global-e, a direct-to-consumer ecommerce provider, and Shopify have announced a three-year renewal of their partnership for 1P (Shopify Managed Markets) and 3P MoR (merchant of record) solutions to empower international D2C transactions on the Shopify platform. For 1P, Global-e remains the exclusive provider of MoR services. Future versions of Managed Markets will leverage Shopify Payments and other elements of the Shopify suite of services.

Stord acquires Ware2Go, a specialty warehouse business, from UPS. Stord, a provider of high-volume fulfillment services and ecommerce technology, announced its acquisition of Ware2Go, a subsidiary of UPS. With this acquisition, Stord adds 21 fulfillment centers to its network and tech platform (warehouse management, order management, customer service). Ware2Go brings an additional 2.5 million square feet of fulfillment centers, complementing Stord’s existing North American footprint and partner network.

Stord

New Ecommerce Tools: May 15, 2025

We publish a rundown each week of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce merchants. This installment includes updates on AI-powered site-search, shopping assistants, product listings, merchant financing, point-of-sale solutions, cross-border transactions, and warehouse automation.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants

Miva expands ecommerce platform with AI search infrastructure and no-code tools. Miva, an ecommerce software and service provider, has launched Miva 10.12, introducing tools to help ecommerce teams move faster and scale. The update adds platform infrastructure for Vexture, Miva’s AI-powered search engine that uses vector-based technology to interpret shopper intent. Merchants can now create and assign product page designs — a new design control panel helps teams manage fonts, buttons, and page spacing. Also, background tasks are now easier to monitor, prioritize, and troubleshoot.

Miva

eBay launches warranties for open-box goods. eBay is offering a warranty program on open-box products in the Electronics and Home categories. Listings in those categories will automatically display the Certified Open Box badge when they meet key service standards and offer free shipping and returns. Each Certified Open Box item comes with a one-year warranty serviced by Allstate Protection Plans.

New genAI tool helps Amazon sellers improve product listings. Amazon has launched Enhance My Listing, a new genAI tool wherein sellers can automatically maintain and optimize their product listings. The tool generates timely, relevant recommendations for product titles, attributes, descriptions, and missing details. Sellers can review, customize, or decline these suggestions, ensuring that listings reflect their expertise while benefiting from Amazon’s detailed knowledge.

Storfund launches merchant financing on marketplaces via Mirakl Connect. Storfund, an ecommerce cash-flow provider, has announced a new partnership enabling businesses to use its cash-flow solution on the 400 marketplaces powered by Mirakl, an ecommerce software provider. Designed to eliminate the standard delay of 25 days between sale and payout, Storfund’s new Daily Advance pays sellers as soon as they ship their goods. Sellers can apply for cash flow on hundreds of marketplaces at the same time.

Storfund

WooCommerce names Square as preferred POS partner. WooCommerce has named Square as its preferred point-of-sale provider for in-person payments. The strategic partnership enables seamless synchronization of inventory, orders, and customer data across digital and physical retail. Square’s POS integration is available to WooCommerce merchants in eight countries: the U.S., Canada, Australia, Japan, the U.K., France, Spain, and Ireland.

Ebanx integrates UPI recurring payments for cross-border ecommerce in India. Ebanx, a global provider of payment services for emerging markets, has integrated UPI Autopay, the recurring payments feature of India’s instant payments system, Unified Payments Interface, into its cross-border payments platform. With the integration, Ebanx’s global ecommerce merchants in industries such as SaaS, streaming, and other subscription-based businesses can now offer recurring payments to their India-based customers.

Bluecore brings AI shopping assistant Alby to Shopify merchants. Bluecore, a marketing technology company, has expanded Alby, its genAI customer-service agent. Merchants can access Alby through Shopify to power conversational AI shopping unique to their brand and customers. Once activated, the AI agent will learn, make decisions, and act on a brand’s behalf, pulling from product data, brand assets, and the company’s tone of voice to ensure accurate responses.

Alby

Fluent and Rebuy partner on post-purchase advertising for Shopify merchants. Fluent, a provider of commerce media solutions, and Rebuy, an ecommerce personalization platform for Shopify brands, have announced a strategic partnership to launch Rebuy Ads powered by Fluent, designed to help merchants further engage their customers while unlocking additional revenue at no cost. The partnership pairs Fluent’s AI-powered advertiser marketplace and demand-generation expertise with Rebuy’s Shopify integration and partner network.

Shopify updates its Sidekick AI tool. Shopify has updated its AI-powered commerce assistant, Sidekick, with multi-step reasoning. Merchants can ask complex questions, and Sidekick will analyze multiple data sources to pinpoint the issue and make suggestions. Sidekick can now generate custom images based on text prompts to help merchants create visually appealing content for hero banners, marketing materials, and illustrations. Also, Sidekick now supports all 20 admin languages, automatically responding in the language detected.

Uber rolls out Courier XL in India to deliver packages up to 1,650 pounds. Uber has launched Courier XL in India, an expanded service under its logistics arm aimed at transporting packages weighing up to 750 kilograms (1,650 pounds). Initially rolled out in Delhi and Mumbai, the service is part of Uber’s broader strategy to strengthen courier offerings and compete in the large-package delivery space, with plans to expand to more cities in the coming months. Courier XL builds on Uber’s two-wheeler parcel service, Courier.

Robotic warehouse firm Pio expands product lineup. Pio, a warehouse automation provider, has announced its global expansion with a new product lineup. Pio now offers four scalable, modular systems: P100 for businesses with fewer than 10,000 monthly orders; P200 for mid-sized operations; P400 for high volume fulfillment centres; P600 for larger high-capacity warehouses. According to Pio, customers can reduce picking labour costs by up to 80%, and installations take as little as five days.

Pio

New Ecommerce Tools: May 8, 2025

Every week we publish a rundown of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce merchants. This installment includes updates on agentic AI commerce, mobile wallets, B2B transactions, one-click checkout, application hosting, AI-powered promotions, and enterprise-ready fulfillment.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants

eBay sellers can apply for a $10,000 grant to grow their business. eBay is giving away $10,000 grants and other perks to 50 active sellers in the U.S. through its annual Up & Running program, now in its sixth year, in partnership with Hello Alice. The 50 winning sellers will receive $10,000 in cash, a $500 stipend to purchase essential technology from eBay Refurbished, and access to eBay education and seller resources to help scale efficiently. Sellers must apply by June 6, and eBay will email winning grant recipients in August.

“Up & Running” from eBay and Hello Alice.

Kibo announces agentic Launchpad to accelerate smarter commerce at scale. Kibo Commerce, a provider of composable selling tools, has announced the launch of Agentic Launchpad. Launchpad is a pre-built integration package connecting Kibo’s Shopper and CSR agents to leading commerce platforms and Kibo’s recently launched Converge Tech Ecosystem partners, including Akeneo and OneRail. According to Kibo, Launchpad delivers real-time product discovery, live inventory insights, conversational checkout, and automated post-purchase care across every touchpoint.

Volt’s one-click PayTo solution available to Shopify customers in Australia. Volt, a global real-time payments platform, has announced its expansion with Shopify to Australia. Shopify merchants can offer Australia-based consumers a one-click checkout experience, powered by Volt’s PayTo, a real-time payment system. Volt’s one-click checkout mimics the traditional card-on-file consumer experience, but utilizes an instant payment scheme. Because shoppers set up a payment agreement with merchants during their first purchase, normally by simply entering their payment ID, future purchases are automatically pre-authorised.

Visa launches Intelligent Commerce platform. Visa has launched Intelligent Commerce, a platform to let artificial intelligence agents purchase products on behalf of users. The system replaces traditional card details with tokenized digital credentials that authorized AI agents can access securely. Users maintain control by setting specific parameters, such as spending limits and merchant categories, while the AI handles the transaction details. The initiative is built on a network of partnerships with leading AI companies.

Visa Intelligent Commerce

Reveel and ProShip partner on integrated parcel shipping. Reveel, a shipping intelligence platform, and ProShip, a multi-carrier shipping software provider, have unveiled an integrated parcel shipping service that draws on ProShip’s automation and Reveel’s advanced analytics and order-level cost intelligence capabilities. Reveel connects carrier invoice data with order and SKU info; ProShip centralizes and automates the management of multiple carriers. With ProShip’s automated carrier management and label generation, as well as Reveel’s invoice reconciliation, businesses can allocate and analyze parcel costs with precision, according to the companies.

PayPal debuts contactless mobile wallet. PayPal is expanding in physical stores across Germany this summer. PayPal’s first-ever contactless mobile wallet will launch to PayPal consumers in that country. Consumers will access the contactless feature through the latest version of the PayPal app (iOS and Android). Consumers can select PayPal with a simple tap of their phone at any location that accepts Mastercard contactless payments.

Webflow Cloud launches for full-stack app hosting. Webflow, a platform to build, manage, and optimize websites, has introduced Cloud, allowing teams to host and deploy full-stack web applications natively within Webflow. Businesses can run dynamic apps, backend logic, and integrated web experiences directly alongside their websites without relying on separate hosting. With Webflow Cloud, technical teams can deliver advanced functionality such as headless ecommerce sites, gated content experiences, personalized onboarding workflows, and custom booking systems.

Webflow Cloud

ShipBob Plus launches for mid-market and enterprise merchants. ShipBob, a global supply chain and fulfillment platform for small and mid-market ecommerce merchants, has launched Plus, an enterprise-ready fulfillment service for fast-growing brands. ShipBob states its Plus offering combines global fulfillment across four key pillars: Supply Chain, Technology, Support, and Access. Per ShipBob, Plus enables high-performing brands to unlock accelerated growth, improve operational resilience, and achieve cost efficiencies through a high-touch, customized fulfillment experience.

Affirm introduced AdaptAI, its AI-powered promotions platform. Affirm, a pay-over-time payment network, has launched AdaptAI, its AI-powered promotions platform, to its merchant partners. AdaptAI enables Affirm to deliver personalized financial benefits (exclusive interest rates, special repayment terms, and immediate cash savings) directly to consumers via the Affirm app and Affirm card. Merchants can deliver these promotions and credit offers, which are optimized specifically for a customer’s shopping preferences, spending habits, and purchase details, at the point of purchase.

Mastercard unveils Agent Pay agentic payments technology. Mastercard has launched its agentic (self-directing) payments program, Mastercard Agent Pay, to enhance generative AI conversations by integrating seamless payments experiences into the tailored recommendations and insights already provided on conversational platforms. The program introduces Mastercard Agentic Tokens, which build upon Mastercard’s tokenization capabilities. Mastercard will work with (i) acquirers and checkout players to enhance tokenization capabilities and (ii) Microsoft to integrate Azure OpenAI Service and Copilot Studio.

Nuvo raises $45 million to develop B2B trade. Nuvo, a network for B2B global trade, has raised $45 million from Sequoia Capital, Spark Capital, Founders Fund, Index Ventures, Human Capital, Foundation Capital, Susa Ventures, and Pear VC. By enabling companies to exchange verified profiles with potential partners, Nuvo provides instant access to critical trust signals, including verification status, creditworthiness, banking information, and trade history. As its network grows, Nuvo states its payments infrastructure and AI systems will power the intelligent foundations needed to connect and coordinate trade.

Nuvo

Get Your Products on ChatGPT Shopping

ChatGPT now recommends products directly in search results. The feature has no ads (so far). Hence any ecommerce business can presumably gain visibility for free.

The recommendations follow from relevant prompts with clear shopping intent. ChatGPT provides info on each product it recommends, including (i) customer ratings from multiple sources, (ii) pricing from multiple sellers, and (iii) explanations of its selections.

Here’s how to expose your products to ChatGPT.

A prompt on ChatGPT for “drip coffee makers” produced multiple recommendations with images, sources, ratings, and a “Top Picks Explained” section. Click image to enlarge.

Get in the Database

In a post titled “Help ChatGPT discover your products,” OpenAI states it is considering a product feed submission feature (likely similar to Google Shopping) and provides a form to receive notifications when it’s live.

Ecommerce businesses should sign up now to become early adopters — before other (bigger) brands.

The post also reminds merchants to ensure OpenAI’s crawler can access their sites. Some content management systems and plugins block OpenAI bots by default. Check your robots.txt file to ensure it doesn’t block “OAI-SearchBot.” Log file analyzers from Screaming Frog and others can confirm the bot is crawling your site.

Knowatoa’s free “AI Search Console” discloses which generative AI bots have access.

Use Schema Markup

ChatGPT supports structured data markup from Schema.org. Thus including detailed product schema will likely increase your chances of being recommended. Searchers’ purchase intent prompts are often very specific with dimensions, colors, and similar.

In a related post, ChatGPT states it will recommend products based in part on the user’s prompt history. Using its memory feature, ChatGPT might know, for example, the searcher’s color and style preferences and will recommend products accordingly.

Searchers’ purchase intent prompts typically seek specific features. A detailed product schema with many facets (colors, sizes, dimensions, warranty, styles, compatibility, etcetera) will increase the likelihood of a recommendation.

Monitor External Product Reviews

In the same related post, ChatGPT states it relies on multiple public sources when displaying product reviews and ratings. While testing, I’ve seen ratings from Target, Amazon, Wired, Business Insider, and others.

Keep an eye on ratings and reviews to encourage ChatGPT’s recommendations. I’ve yet to see a ChatGPT recommendation with bad reviews. Some platforms (Better Business Bureau) often lean towards negative reviews, while others (Facebook) are typically positive (e.g., Facebook).

Shopper Approved can help improve your product ratings by adding positive reviews from your site to external platforms as needed.

New Ecommerce Tools: May 1, 2025

We publish a rundown each week of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce merchants. This installment includes updates from ChatGPT (shopping), BigCommerce (B2B portal), PayPal (programmatic ads), eBay (Klarna partnership), WooCommerce (Affirm partnership), Caro Holdings (AI customer service), and more.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants

OpenAI adds shopping to ChatGPT. OpenAI is launching a shopping experience on ChatGPT, including product picks and buy buttons. ChatGPT recommends products to prospective shoppers based on what the platform knows about their preferences, as well as product reviews pulled from across the web. Shoppers will be redirected to the merchant’s website to finish the transaction.

ChatGPT’s product recommendations. Image from OpenAI.

BigCommerce and Silk Commerce launch hub for dealers, distributors, franchises. BigCommerce has announced the launch of Distributed Ecommerce Hub, a joint offering with systems integrator and digital commerce agency Silk Commerce. Distributed Ecommerce Hub empowers manufacturers, brands, and franchisors to create and centrally manage branded storefronts for their dealer, distributor, or franchise networks. The platform is designed for businesses that have outgrown traditional multi-storefront architecture or need deeper enablement across distributed sales channels, according to BigCommerce.

Skypad launches analytics platform for Walmart Marketplace sellers. Skypad, a retail analytics platform, has announced its availability to Walmart Marketplace sellers. Skypad states that its platform offers solutions for sales and inventory analytics, helping sellers optimize performance, streamline operations, and increase profitability across multiple retail channels. Sellers get real-time sales and inventory reports in one place. In addition to Walmart Marketplace, Skypad aggregates data from all retail channels. Companies can select weekly, monthly, or ad hoc reports.

Znode releases distributed SaaS platform for B2B ecommerce. Znode, a scalable B2B ecommerce platform, has released its latest version. New features include embedded AI for generating product descriptions and search engine content, a visual page builder for drag-and-drop creation, dynamic data, hydrated search for enhanced product discovery, pre-configured business intelligence reports via Microsoft Power BI (for data visualization), and React Next.js front-end accelerators. Customers can run an unlimited number of storefronts and portals, manage an unlimited number of catalogs, and more.

Znode

PayPal launches programmatic ads powered by shopping data. PayPal has launched Offsite Ads for advertisers to tap into PayPal’s transaction graph and reach consumers across the open web through display and video advertising. PayPal Offsite Ads is powered by actual purchase data across merchants. This enables brands to reach relevant audiences based on real shopping intent. Advertisers can leverage PayPal’s understanding of when and where people buy, across a range of categories, to inform smarter media buying decisions.

Qliro partners with Two to launch B2B BNPL across the Nordics. Two, a Europe-based provider of B2B payments technology, has announced a strategic partnership with Qliro, a Nordic payments provider, to introduce its B2B buy-now, pay-later solutions to small and mid-size businesses across that region. Two’s B2B BNPL capabilities will directly integrate into Qliro’s existing checkout.

Square updates point-of-sale app. Square has announced a new point-of-sale app. The app is designed with feature sets tailored to each industry, providing sellers with a personalized POS experience that equips them with the right tools for their business.

Banuba launches Shopify augmented reality try-on plugin. Banuba, a provider of augmented reality technology, has launched a virtual try-on plugin for Shopify that simplifies the integration of AR features. The Banuba virtual try-on plugin lets users test makeup on their screens. It also features an AI-powered recommendation tool that automatically analyzes users’ appearances and suggests cosmetics that complement their looks.

Banuba’s virtual try-on plugin.

PSQ Payments launches integration with Shopify. PSQ Payments, a payment platform from PublicSquare, has announced the launch of its direct integration with Shopify. The PSQ Payments app offers features such as an optimized Shopify checkout, a comprehensive merchant dashboard for real-time tracking of payments and refunds, built-in fraud protection, and refund management.

eBay and Klarna expand BNPL partnership to the U.S. eBay has expanded its global partnership with Klarna, a buy-now-pay-later provider, to the U.S. market. Shoppers in the U.S. can pay for eligible eBay purchases using Klarna’s flexible payment options, including “Pay in 4.” Additionally, Klarna has recently introduced its resell feature to U.S. eBay shoppers.

Caro Holdings launches AI chat agent platform. Caro Holdings has announced the release of its AI chat agent, an intelligent, always-on assistant designed to help businesses reduce costs and deliver premium customer service without the need for additional staff. Caro’s smart agents can handle a variety of support tasks, including answering FAQs such as return policies or product details, scheduling appointments through chat, order tracking, identifying buyers, and gathering reviews and insights.

Affirm and WooCommerce bring partnership to the U.K. WooCommerce announced an expansion to the U.K. of its partnership with Affirm, a buy-now-pay-later provider. WooCommerce merchants in the U.K. can now integrate Affirm and offer customers customizable payment options at checkout. Approved customers can select the customized payment plan that best suits their needs.

Affirm

Multiple Stores, 1 Backend: Pros and Cons

For 20 years I’ve managed data for both large and small ecommerce companies. I’ve migrated data from one platform to another, cleansed data, optimized data for search engines, enhanced data for conversions, and more.

Ecommerce firms with multiple storefronts and overlapping products pose unique data challenges. Combining the storefronts into a single backend centralizes the data and streamlines oversight. But it comes with costs.

What follows are my pros and cons for combining multiple storefronts with the same products into one backend.

Pros

Time management. Multiple storefronts with separate backends mean uploading the same images, descriptions, and product data repeatedly. Combining that info into a single backend saves much time. It eliminates the need to log in to each store and streamlines the process of adding and updating the same products.

Analytics. A single backend makes combined performance tracking (for all stores) easier. It eliminates the need for a separate business intelligence tool to view all data in one place.

Inventory management. Multiple storefronts with different backends typically require third-party software to track overall quantities of the same item. When all stores point to the same backend, standard inventory management tools — native to many ecommerce platforms — can fill that need.

Different regions. Targeting different global regions from multiple storefronts is often easier with the same backend. For example, a merchant could sell the same product in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the U.K., and use country-specific top-level domains, such as .ca, .co.uk, and .au, to attract local customers. Consumers in each of those countries speak English, allowing the same (or very similar) product descriptions and images. Sellers would need to customize only the currencies, payment, and shipping methods.

Cons

Search engine optimization. Utilizing the same backend to display the same products in different stores results in duplicate search-engine data, such as titles, product descriptions, and images, all competing against each other for rankings. The result is likely lower overall search visibility for all of them.

Unique prices. The same price across all stores prevents standalone prices and discounts. A workaround is custom pricing per channel or customer group. For example, a merchant may sell the same product on both a B2C and a B2B site. The B2B price could be quantity-based versus a single-item amount for B2C customers. This assumes the ecommerce platform has that functionality. In my experience, managing different price groups and price levels is more complex when using the same backend.

Promotional flexibility. Promotions for specific items on specific storements are difficult with a single backend, if not impossible. An example is adding banners for sale items in one store but not another. Some ecommerce platforms allow for unique promos by storefront. Others are SKU-based regardless of the store.

Risk. A single backend risks disabling all storefronts due to data breaches, fraud, platform errors, traffic spikes, and similar issues. Sometimes putting eggs in multiple baskets is better.

Customer, order management. Some ecommerce platforms allow customer segmentation by storefront. Others do not, which complicates emails, audience targeting, and overall marketing initiatives. Without a clear storefront distinction, it can be confusing to know which store drove which order.

Verify

To be sure, my pros and cons depend on the ecommerce platform. Some facilitate multi-store backends better than others. Before consolidating, verify the capabilities, particularly for SEO, inventory management, marketing, and pricing.

ChatGPT Shopping Is Coming

Diligent code hounds discovered Shopify variable names in ChatGPT’s JavaScript, leading to speculation that the ecommerce platform might soon announce a new AI integration.

Several sources reported finding the Shopify-related code on April 20, 2025, beginning with Alexey Shabanov’s article in TestingCatalog.

Shabanov displayed screen captures of the code and speculated that OpenAI might have an affiliate relationship with Shopify.

The article also noted that ChatGPT already has some ecommerce capabilities in its Operator research agent, including the ability to book travel and order groceries.

ChatGPT’s Code

Finding a Shopify reference in ChatGPT’s code is as simple as opening up the inspection tool in a web browser.

In Chrome or a browser derived from it:

• Navigate to Chatgpt.com and right-click.
• In the menu, select “Inspect.”
• Open the “Sources” tab.
• Find the “assets” folder, which may be under a CDN.
• Right-click on the folder and select “search in folder.”
• Type “shopify” and find the references.

The code for ChatGPT 4o included a Shopify reference on April 24, 2025, using the Arc browser. Click image to enlarge.

AI Shopping

The Shopify discovery generated buzz in the ecommerce community, but it is not surprising.

AI-powered shopping became inevitable with the mainstream adoption of large language models. Consumers who utilize AI tools for research and internet searches will also want to shop.

This apparent relationship with OpenAI is also not the first time Shopify has worked with an AI tool. In November 2024, Perplexity announced its “Buy with Pro” feature, which integrates with Shopify.

“When you ask Perplexity a shopping question, you’ll still get the precise, objective answers you expect, plus easy-to-read product cards showing the most relevant items, along with key details presented in a simple, visual format. These cards aren’t sponsored — they’re unbiased recommendations, tailored to your search by our AI,” Perplexity stated in its announcement.

Separately, on April 18, 2025, Microsoft announced a merchant program for its Copilot AI. Online shops can apply to integrate with the Copilot app to “gain visibility, acquire more customers, and generate sales.”

Finally, since at least 2024 Google Shopping has integrated AI into various features and search results.

AI Optimization

AI-powered shopping assistants represent concerns and opportunities for online sellers. A core question for merchants is whether AI shopping will be organic or paid.

Perplexity, for example, has stated that it does not earn revenue for including Shopify-based products in its results. For the moment, it’s an organic promotional channel for online merchants.

Similarly, Microsoft does not appear to require merchants to pay for inclusion in its program.

Thus if AI tools do not charge merchants, the trend could lead to practices similar to search engine optimization. Online sellers would optimize product feeds to match likely prompts and otherwise retain traditional SEO tactics.

Paid Inclusion

It is also possible that merchants will pay to list products in an AI shopping assistant or a premium tier.

Payment could have a few forms. Sellers could build an AI storefront not unlike Amazon Seller Central. A monthly fee could provide access to the platform and enable direct product listings.

Alternatively, merchants could list products via a feed or platform integration and then pay for featured products, which might include an add-to-cart link or click-to-buy feature, similar to ChatGPT’s apparent integration with Shopify.

Merchants would presumably treat paid inclusions like other advertising channels, weighing customer acquisition costs against average order value or customer lifetime value.

Fragmented or Concentrated?

A second consideration for the forthcoming AI shopping trend is whether the market will be fragmented or concentrated.

The market would be fragmented if the various AI tools developed their own product discovery and indexing tools. Merchants would provide product feeds to ChatGPT, Copilot, Perplexity, Grok, and others individually or via a feed distribution tool.

Conversely, if it developed strategic partnerships with top AI providers, Shopify could concentrate AI shopping on its platform. Merchants would work with one tool — Shopify — and disseminate product info to all leading AI platforms.

New Ecommerce Tools: April 24, 2025

Every week we publish a rundown of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce merchants. This installment includes releases from Spur (testing), ShipBob (order fulfillment), Lili (financial tools), RedTrack (media buying), BlueSnap (payments), Captiv8 (influencers), Bringg (delivery), InPost (parcel lockers), and Ordergroove (subscriptions).

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants

Spur raises $4.5 million to build AI testing for online retailers. Spur, which provides ecommerce retailers and travel booking platforms with AI-powered testing that emulates consumer shopping behavior, has secured $4.5 million from investors including First Round, Pear VC, Neo, Conviction, Liquid2Ventures, and Predictive Venture Partners. Spur will use the funds to build its AI quality assurance platform and hire roles in applied AI, business operations, and go-to-market tools.

Spur

Shipping platform ShipBob partners with Temu. ShipBob, a supply chain and fulfillment platform for small and medium-sized businesses, has announced a partnership and integration with global marketplace Temu. ShipBob merchants can expand their customer base by accessing Temu’s vast resource of shoppers, while ShipBob fulfills orders from a U.S. warehouse. ShipBob merchants can connect their account to Temu in just a few clicks, and then sync products, inventory, orders, and tracking information.

Lili partners with ecommerce platforms for financial tools. Lili, a financial platform for small business owners, has launched a suite of monetary tools. Through Connect, Lili’s embedded finance integration, ecommerce platforms can offer tailored banking, accounting, and tax solutions to simplify and manage their businesses’ finances. Through Connect’s ecommerce partners, including Convesio, North Commerce, and Hostinger, merchants can open a business checking account directly.

RedTrack launches AI agents for ecommerce media buyers. RedTrack, an AI-driven automation and analytics platform for ecommerce media buyers, has launched its AI-powered agents to simplify reporting, insights, and campaign optimization. The multi-agent system transforms how media buyers interact with data, providing automated reports and actionable insights from a single screen. RedTrack’s AI-driven automation consolidates, analyzes, and presents insights. Media buyers can ask the right question, and the platform will generate in-depth analysis and deliver actionable insights instantly, per RedTrack.

RedTrack

Payment platform BlueSnap partners with ecommerce platform Shopware. BlueSnap, a payment orchestration platform for B2B and B2C companies, is now a payment partner for the open-source ecommerce platform Shopware. Shopware customers in the U.S. and Canada can access a suite of payment features through BlueSnap, including credit card processing, payment links, secure storage, and mobile wallets Google Pay and Apple Pay.

Influencer platform Captiv8 launches Storefronts. Captiv8, an influencer marketing platform for enterprise brands, has launched Storefronts, empowering any brand, regardless of vertical, to launch a curated, creator-powered storefront with no technical integrations required. According to Captiv8, brands can (i) go live in minutes with full merchant attribution tracking. (ii) blend brand and influencer presence in a community-first shopping experience, and (iii) enable purchases directly from social feeds.

Bringg launches Dynamic Delivery Slots. Bringg, a last-mile solutions provider, has announced its newest platform extension, Dynamic Delivery Slots, enabling merchants to offer delivery windows during ecommerce checkout. According to Bringg, the new extension instantly and continuously evaluates both internal and external variables, including real-time capacity, order requirements, driver compliance, service area, and blackouts.

Bringg

Thunes expands global network with Business Payments. Thunes, a worldwide payment network, has launched cross-border Business Payments. Members of Thunes’ direct global network — enterprises, merchants, neo-banks, traditional banks mobile wallets — can experience faster business payments in over 30 currencies (including USD, EUR, and CNY) and across more than 50 countries.

ShipSaving updates shipping software. ShipSaving, a shipping software provider for ecommerce businesses, has upgraded its platform, introducing a refreshed user interface and features that simplify day-to-day shipping tasks, such as order management, shipping labels, and shipment status monitoring. Merchants can customize packing slips and tracking emails, provide real-time shipping and delivery updates, and automate shipping methods based on SKU, weight, item quantity, total value, and destination.

InPost acquires U.K. parcel firm Yodel. InPost, a Poland-based parcel locker company, has acquired U.K.-based parcel delivery firm Yodel. The merger will make InPost the third-largest independent logistics player in the U.K., building on the partnership established in 2024, when Yodel began providing last-mile services through InPost’s locker-to-door service. The acquisition will enable InPost to accelerate its growth in Britain with an increase to 300 million parcels annually and 700 ecommerce stores.

Ordergroove launches Frontier for AI-powered subscription management. Ordergroove, a subscription and membership software provider for enterprise brands and retailers, has announced Frontier, a suite of AI-powered tools to grow recurring revenue. “AI Assistant” is a GPT-powered conversational layer that helps brands get answers instantly across the Help Center, Developer Docs, and Academy. “Disengaged Subscriptions Concierge” utilizes intelligent recommendations to manage lapsed subscribers effectively. “Recovery Optimizer” identifies the optimal mix of timing and retry logic to recover failed subscription payments.

Ordergroove