Good afternoon,

Here’s the headlines for this week: 5 September 2025

ECOMMERCE

AI dominance in e-commerce has a new focus: agentic checkout technology

• Mastercard, Visa, Google, and PayPal are rolling out “agentic checkout” systems that let AI complete purchases autonomously.
• This shift aligns with broader trends in agentic commerce, where AI agents operate on behalf of users—from search to checkout. 
• Experts warn these systems may cut into brands’ visibility unless they invest in structured, AI-friendly product data.

Trump will ask Supreme Court for ‘expedited ruling’ on tariffs appeal

• Trump petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to swiftly reverse a lower-court ruling that found most tariffs illegal.
• Filing warns of potential “economic catastrophe” if the tariffs fall, and seeks arguments by November.
• Outcome could reshape trade costs touching cross-border e-commerce and pricing.

CONSUMERS

Nearly 60% of Americans Use Gen AI Tools for Online Shopping – 1 in 4 Say ChatGPT Beats Google for Product Research

• 59 % of U.S. consumers now tap generative AI for shopping tasks—and reluctance to let AI handle transactions has dropped from 66 % to 32 %.
• ChatGPT is the tool of choice for 65 % of users, and 25 % say it outperforms Google for product research.
• Still, 85 % express concerns around privacy, personalization, and AI fatigue, signaling growing adoption isn’t without friction.

U.S. shoppers' orders canceled as world shuts down some American-bound shipments

• End of the de minimis duty-free exemption is prompting cancellations and delays on overseas orders.
• Many postal operators and sellers paused U.S. deliveries while new duty collection processes roll out.
• Consumers face 10%–50% tariffs or flat duties on small parcels, raising basket costs. 

More people are searching for Reddit results and some brands are benefiting

• Reddit’s visibility in Google results is rising, steering shoppers to community threads.
• Brands seeing wins focus on authentic, helpful participation, not promotion.
• Playbooks lean on AMAs, flairs, and community norms to avoid backlash. 

TECH

How LinkedIn became a breakout platform for content creators

• LinkedIn is courting creators with format variety (carousels, video, long-form) and higher engagement.
• Monetization and tooling are improving, though creators note growing-pains.
• For B2B and prosumer brands, it’s a high-intent distribution channel.

TikTok's new AI mandate is getting backlash from big advertisers

• TikTok is requiring all Shop advertisers to use its automated ad tool, GMV Max, from 1 September, phasing out manual campaigns.
• GMV Max promises AI-driven campaign setup and ROI optimization, but brands complain about a loss of targeting control.
• Smaller sellers may benefit from automation, but larger advertisers fear reduced transparency and rushed deployment.

When school’s out, so is the use of ChatGPT

• ChatGPT usage takes a sharp dip each summer—suggesting heavy usage is driven by academic needs, not evergreen consumer behavior.
• Analysts warn this trend could reflect a limited market if dependency remains tied to schooling tasks only.
• For brands and toolmakers, this means usage rhythms are seasonal—making timing and messaging around educational use key.

RETAILERS

Amazon quietly blocks AI bots from Meta, Google, Huawei and more

• Amazon updated its robots.txt to ban six more AI crawlers, including those from Meta, Google, Huawei, and Mistral—escalating the defense against data scraping.
• This move underscores a broader “AI commerce war”, as platforms jockey for control of proprietary data and visibility in the agentic shopping era.
• Amazon isn't alone—Shopify has similarly restricted “buy-for-me” agent crawls, affirming that checkouts are meant for humans, not AI agents. 

Best Buy more than doubles inventory with online marketplace

• Best Buy’s new Mirakl-powered marketplace launched August 19, more than doubling product selection by adding categories like musical instruments, home, office, décor, and toys.
• Some categories have even tripled in assortment, signaling a major expansion in reach and appeal.
• This is Best Buy’s largest-ever inventory scale-up—poised to strengthen its position against competitors like Amazon and Walmart. 

Amazon reverses its Google Shopping retreat, making life harder for performance buyers

• After pausing Google Shopping campaigns for about a month, Amazon has resumed ad spend—regaining auction share and squeezing competitors.
• Advertisers enjoyed temporary CPC relief and higher impression share during Amazon’s absence.
• The return signals renewed competition intensity in performance advertising, reinforcing the need for diversified channel strategies.

See you next week,

The ChannelSight Team

Sign up below to get Coffee & Commerce delivered to your inbox each week.