AI helpers that shop for you may skip the pages where stores show ads, which could hurt a major source of retail income and change how you shop.
AI shopping helpers could cut into the ad money that online stores depend on. The idea is simple. If a program shops for you, it may never look at the pages where retailers show ads. Technology Org reported on the risk this week.
Retailers earn money by showing ads to people who browse their websites and apps. An AI agent is a tool that can search, compare and shop for you with little effort on your part. If it skips the pages where ads appear, the store may lose that income even when a sale happens.
Online sellers are the most exposed. Shoppers may feel it too, because stores could change how they show prices and deals if their ad income shrinks.
The material available does not name specific stores, AI products or dollar figures. It also does not say how large the loss could be or how soon it might happen. For now, this is a risk to watch, not a measured result.
If you sell online, plan for customers who send an AI to shop for them. If you buy, expect changes in how deals and prices are shown.
If you sell online, plan for shoppers who send an AI in their place, and if you buy, expect stores to change how they show deals.
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