With shopping season fast approaching and buyers on the lookout for the best Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals, Google has explained a few ways users can take advantage of AI to get the most out of this shopping season.
Four ways to help you shop smartly with AI:
1) Price tracking and deal alerts:
Google says it is making the need for scouring online stores waiting for a price drop redundant. The company says its AI in Search will allow users to track prices of products directly within Search. Users can click on “track price” on an item they are interested in and specify details like colour and size, and Google will send a notification when the price falls within their budget.
In the U.S., Google says users will even be able to complete the checkout automatically using Google Pay. They will also be able to tap into price insights to see whether a discount is genuinely low or just typical compared to the past three months.
2) AI help for the toughest people to shop for
We all have those people who are notoriously hard to choose gifts for, and Google says its AI in the Gemini app and AI Mode in Search can now help take that stress off your hands. Users just need to describe the vibe, interests or needs of the person they are buying for, and they can get “intelligently organised responses that include product recs, rich visuals and all the shopping details you need — like reviews, promos and inventory data — to find something just right.”
3) Find items locally
Instead of spending the holiday season calling up small stores to check if they have something in stock, Google’s agentic AI can do it for you and confirm exactly what you need. Google is testing a new Let Google call option in Search which, when users search for an item “near me”, allows Gemini to call nearby shops on your behalf and send the results via text or email. The company says it is testing the feature with certain categories like toys, health and beauty, and electronics.
4) Try your holiday outfit virtually:
“Finding the perfect holiday look can mean endless hours spent in dressing rooms. Skip all that and use virtual try-on to explore your festive ‘fits instead. You can see how clothes from billions of product listings look on you just by snapping a photo of yourself,” Google said in its blogpost.
The company has a virtual try-on feature that lets users check how sweaters, dresses and even shoes might look on them with a quick photo.