OpenAI is expanding the capabilities of ChatGPT with a new virtual try-on feature designed to bridge the gap between digital discovery and physical retail. Under the new functionality, users can easily take a fresh photo or upload an existing selfie directly into the platform to generate realistic, customized images. This allows shoppers to see precisely how clothing and accessories will look on their own bodies before making a purchase. When browsing applicable apparel and accessory listings within ChatGPT, users will notice a dedicated "try on" button appearing on the product display, signaling the integration of advanced generative visual technology into conversational shopping.
This latest rollout marks another significant step by OpenAI to court both everyday shoppers and major global retailers onto its expanding platform. As the artificial intelligence leader introduces an increasing array of shopping features to ChatGPT, brands and merchants are rapidly experimenting with the ecosystem to capture consumer interest in conversational spaces.
The strategy builds on a series of recent retail integrations. In April, David’s Bridal established a presence on Shopify’s Agentic Storefronts for ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot, enabling shoppers to sift through the retailer’s extensive assortment by silhouette on both AI-driven platforms. Just the following month, Etsy debuted its own dedicated application on ChatGPT, further cementing the platform’s role as a viable commercial search and discovery engine. These developments follow OpenAI’s introduction last year of a robust shopping research feature capable of recommending and comparing products dynamically based on intricate, conversational search queries from users.
With the deployment of the new try-on tool, OpenAI is actively catching up to competitors like Google, which has steadily built out its own suite of product visualization features over the last several years. Google debuted its generative artificial intelligence virtual try-on tool in 2023, initially allowing consumers to virtually try on women’s tops to gauge fit and appearance. The following year, Google extended the visualization feature to encompass dresses, and last year, the technology expanded further to include shoes, demonstrating a sustained industry-wide push toward immersive online fitting experiences.
The race among tech giants to integrate virtual try-on technology is driven by compelling data regarding consumer behavior and sales performance. Research conducted prior to the recent platform rollouts indicated that brands and online merchants are aggressively seeking out visualization tools to drive higher sales conversion rates and improve customer satisfaction. According to a 2024 survey by Perfect Corp., brands that successfully implemented virtual try-on technology saw their sales conversion rates more than double. Furthermore, more than a third of respondents—specifically 38.4%—identified virtual fitting rooms and try-on capabilities as the ideal way to recreate traditional physical shopping experiences within the digital online environment.
As artificial intelligence platforms continue to evolve from text-based assistants into comprehensive commercial hubs, the integration of personalized visual tools like the new ChatGPT try-on button highlights the changing expectations of modern consumers. By allowing shoppers to visualize products on their own likenesses directly within a chat interface, OpenAI and its retail partners are positioning conversational commerce as a central pillar of the future retail landscape.
