(Credit: Target)
OpenAI really wants to keep you inside the ChatGPT interface, and one the ways it's doing that is letting you shop inside the app. Target is the latest retailer to sign up, joining Walmart, Etsy, and Shopify ahead of next week's crucial Black Friday sales.
It comes after OpenAI introduced third-party apps for ChatGPT, meaning you can link services like Booking.com, Spotify, and Zillow to ChatGPT and ask questions about them. With Instant Checkout, retailers can also allow ChatGPT to facilitate purchases.
Target suggests customers can ask ChatGPT to help "plan a holiday family movie night," which it says will generate a list of recommended products like blankets, candles, slippers, and snacks.
Put the items you wish to buy in your cart and buy within ChatGPT using your Target account and its attached payment methods. It currently supports home delivery or store pickup.
"This is just the beginning," Target says. "The Target experience in ChatGPT will continue to evolve in the weeks ahead as Target enhances it with new features, such as linking Target Circle accounts and offering same-day delivery, that make it even more helpful based on how consumers use it.”
Target's ChatGPT integration will launch in beta next week. That's Black Friday week, and it's clearly important for both brands to have it up and running ahead of the holiday rush. Target also has a ChatGPT-like interface on its website and app called the Target Gift Finder.
One retailer you probably won't see inside ChatGPT is Amazon. The e-commerce giant recently sued OpenAI rival Perplexity for allegedly allowing its AI agent to access Amazon customer accounts without the consent of the company or its customers.