Walmart’s partnership with Sam Altman-led OpenAI to enable shopping through ChatGPT has not delivered strong results so far. According to a report by Wired, the feature that allows users to buy products directly within the chatbot, has seen lower sales compared to traditional online shopping methods. As per the report, Walmart made around 200,000 products available for purchase inside ChatGPT through a feature called Instant Checkout. However, conversion rates were significantly lower.The publication quotes Daniel Danker, executive vice president overseeing product and design at Walmart. He said that conversion rates for in-chat purchases were “three times lower” than purchases where users were redirected to Walmart’s website. This means fewer users completed transactions when shopping directly inside ChatGPT.The report noted that some product categories performed better than others. Items such as vitamin and protein supplements were among the top sellers through the chatbot. Other categories that saw activity included automotive, beauty, home management, hardware, and tools. These made up more than half of the orders.

Walmart may shift to new chatbot integration

The report said Walmart and OpenAI are now moving away from the Instant Checkout model. Instead, Walmart will introduce its own chatbot, Sparky, within ChatGPT.Danker said the earlier system created issues because it required users to complete purchases item by item. “They fear that when checkout happens automatically after every single item that they’re going to receive five boxes when they actually just want it all in one,” he said.The new system will allow users to add multiple items to a cart and complete purchases in a more standard way.

How Walmart’s Sparky may work

Under the new setup, users will log into Walmart’s Sparky chatbot within ChatGPT. Their shopping carts across Walmart’s app, website, and chatbot will sync. “When Sparky travels, it’s the Walmart store meeting you where you are, instead of a completely broken experience,” Danker said.The chatbot is designed to help users search, compare, and buy products while keeping the shopping process connected across platforms.Walmart said ChatGPT is bringing in new customers at about twice the rate of traditional search engines. However, the company believes fully automated AI shopping may still take time.“This idea that it will all become automated might be a little bit far-fetched,” Danker said. OpenAI also said it plans to focus more on helping users research products while giving retailers more control over the checkout process. The changes indicate that companies are still adjusting their approach as they test AI-based shopping tools.