OpenAI is stepping up its efforts to court online shoppers and major retailers by introducing a powerful new feature to ChatGPT: an interactive virtual try-on tool designed to change how consumers evaluate apparel and accessories prior to making a purchase.
Under the newly rolled-out functionality, users will encounter a dedicated "try on" button directly on product listings for clothing and accessories within the ChatGPT interface. To utilize the feature, shoppers can either snap a fresh selfie using their device’s camera or upload an existing photo. The system then generates a visual rendering, allowing the user to see precisely how garments, accessories, and complementary styles look on their own body before committing to a transaction.
This latest feature represents a significant evolution in how conversational artificial intelligence integrates with the retail landscape, bridging the gap between digital discovery and personalized fitting. By bringing visual try-on capabilities natively into chat-based interactions, OpenAI is positioning ChatGPT not merely as an informational search assistant, but as an active, transactional shopping destination.
The integration of advanced shopping capabilities into ChatGPT reflects a broader, strategic push by OpenAI to attract both consumers and retail brands to its expanding ecosystem. As the company continues to introduce tailored shopping features, prominent retailers have increasingly begun experimenting with the platform to reach tech-savvy consumers in novel ways.
The momentum has been building steadily over recent months. In April, David’s Bridal established a presence on Shopify’s Agentic Storefronts for ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot. That implementation enabled shoppers to seamlessly sift through the bridal retailer’s extensive assortment by specific silhouettes across both major artificial intelligence platforms. Shortly thereafter, in May, marketplace giant Etsy debuted its dedicated app directly on ChatGPT, further expanding the variety of goods accessible through conversational search.
These retail integrations build upon foundation work laid last year, when OpenAI first introduced a comprehensive shopping research feature designed to recommend, evaluate, and compare products based on intricate user search queries. The addition of a visual try-on tool brings OpenAI’s capabilities into closer alignment with established industry competitors, most notably Google, which has aggressively invested in product visualization technology over recent years.
Google pioneered widespread consumer expectations for generative artificial intelligence fitting rooms in 2023 by debuting its virtual try-on tool, which initially allowed consumers to virtually sample women’s tops. The search giant quickly broadened the utility of the technology, extending the feature to encompass dresses the following year, and expanding further into footwear last year.
The fierce competition among technology giants to offer robust virtual fitting tools is underpinned by clear consumer demand and proven commercial results. Prior to the widespread deployment of advanced generative artificial intelligence platforms by companies like OpenAI and Google, market research consistently underscored the commercial value of visualization technology for online merchants.
Brands that successfully implemented virtual try-on technology experienced a dramatic boost in their sales conversion rates, often seeing them more than double, according to a 2024 survey conducted by Perfect Corp. Furthermore, consumer sentiment heavily favors these immersive tools, with more than a third—specifically 38.4%—of survey respondents identifying virtual fitting rooms and try-on applications as the ideal method for recreating the tactile, physical shopping experience within digital retail environments.
As OpenAI continues to refine its e-commerce capabilities, the introduction of selfie-based generation and try-on features highlights the rapidly shifting nature of digital retail, where conversational discovery and personalized visualization are quickly becoming standard consumer expectations.
