OpenAI is once again experimenting with the ways its conversational artificial intelligence assistant, ChatGPT, can support users during their online shopping journeys. On Thursday, the artificial intelligence company announced the global launch of a pair of new shopping features. This rollout introduces a way for users to virtually try on clothing and accessories, alongside a brand-new favoriting function designed to help people save products they like for later reference, evaluation, and purchase.
These latest updates arrive at a time when major AI assistants across the technology sector are actively exploring consumer use cases centered around retail and ecommerce. OpenAI has previously navigated a shifting landscape in this sector, having already had to pivot away from one of its earlier commercial concepts—an instant checkout feature that ultimately failed to perform well with consumers. More recently, agentic AI startups have attempted to push proactive product recommendations directly to users. However, some consumers felt those proactive suggestions were an overreach, likening them to intrusive advertisements rather than helpful, organic advice.
OpenAI stated that its newly introduced shopping features leverage the recently launched ChatGPT Images 2.5 model. According to the company, this updated image generation model produces significantly more natural lighting and richer textures, follows complex editing instructions much more reliably, and reduces overall image generation latency to create a smoother, more responsive user experience.
To start utilizing the new capabilities, the virtual try-on feature allows ChatGPT users to upload either a personal selfie or a full-body photograph. This enables the system to realistically visualize how a specific article of clothing or a fashion accessory might look on them. This option will appear conveniently as a new "Try On" button embedded directly within ChatGPT’s shopping results. Furthermore, users can also upload an image of a standalone item—such as a screenshot captured from a web browser—and ask ChatGPT to virtually try it on for them.
The other newly introduced option, dubbed "Favorites," lets shoppers save products they discover directly to a dedicated Library within the application, allowing them to easily return to them at a later time. The company notes that these saved items will be organized alongside the user’s generated try-on images within the app’s storage space.
OpenAI noted that ChatGPT is designed to help users shop in several other creative and practical ways as well. For instance, consumers can describe a specific aesthetic or style that they would like to experiment with, and then ask the assistant to shop for the individual pieces required to complete that particular look. Alternatively, users can upload photographs of celebrity outfits and ask the system to track down the exact items they are wearing that are currently available for purchase online.
This latter capability sees the conversational assistant moving directly into territory that established platforms like Pinterest and Google have dominated in recent years. Both companies have long served as primary digital destinations for fashion inspiration and visual discovery, successfully converting user inspiration into direct sales for online retailers.
Whether ChatGPT will ultimately become consumers’ preferred primary choice for this type of lifestyle and retail activity, however, remains to be seen—especially given that Google launched its own virtual try-on capabilities for shoppers last year.
