Google uses AI to enhance its Shopping service in-store and online

Google has unveiled a raft of new Google Shopping enhancements that are US-only (for now). It follows last month’s relaunch of the service that has been rebuilt using AI “to give shoppers a more assistive and personalised way to shop the world’s stores in one place”.

Looking beyond online-only shopping, Google Lens has been upgraded. It’s used for nearly 20 billion visual searches every month, and 20% of those searches are shopping-focused. Now, when shopping in-store, Google Lens “can quickly show you product insights tailored to the store you’re in. Just snap a photo to find product information, similar products in-stock, whether a store’s price is competitive and shopper reviews”.

The update was made possible by major advancements in its AI image recognition technology. It’s powered by the Shopping Graph’s 45 billion+ product listings, in-stock inventory data from a range of retailers and its Gemini models. Some 72% of Americans say they use their smartphone while shopping in-store, and more than half say they’ve left a store empty-handed because they didn’t feel confident enough to buy.

“This new feature can give shoppers the information and confidence they need to make a decision on the spot,” we’re told.

To start, people will be able to use the feature with beauty products, toys or electronics at stores of all sizes that share their local inventory with Google. 

Starting this festive season, consumers will also be able to find what they’re shopping for in Google Maps. They’ll be able to search for products in Maps and find nearby stores selling them. 

This feature will be available for clothing, home goods, electronics, and more, as well as items from grocery stores or retailers. Product search in Maps is launching in the US in the coming weeks.

And it’s expanding features to offer more flexibility and security when shoppers pay. Earlier this year it introduced BNPL options to Google Pay with partners Affirm and Zip. Now it’s adding Afterpay as an option and Klarna is coming soon.

As well as that, it will soon begin piloting a service to help merchants better identify fraudulent transactions and help prevent fraudsters from using stolen financial information, saying it “will also help unblock good transactions that may be mistaken as fraud”.