At Google I/O 2025, the company announced a major upgrade to online shopping: a new AI-driven feature called agentic checkout, part of its broader AI Mode experience. This marks a shift from search-and-click to AI-assisted shopping, where discovery, decision-making, and even purchasing are increasingly supported by automation; but with the user firmly in control.

Checkout, On Your Terms

Agentic checkout allows users to track a product’s price and set preferences such as size, color, and budget. When the price drops within your set range, Google notifies you. If you confirm, tapping “buy for me” triggers Google to add the item to the merchant’s cart and complete the checkout using Google Pay.

The purchase is made on your behalf, but only after explicit confirmation. You define the parameters, and the AI handles the execution. According to Google, this system is designed to act “when the price is right for you,” offering a balance between automation and agency.

“Our new AI Mode experience is built for every part of shopping; from finding inspiration to buying at the right moment.“

— Lilian Rincon, Vice President, Product Management, Google

While still rolling out across U.S. listings, agentic checkout reflects a broader trend: removing friction from e-commerce by letting AI act as a digital assistant that monitors prices and completes purchases when all conditions are met.

Discovery Reimagined with AI Mode

Agentic checkout is only one part of Google’s new AI Mode, which redefines how users search for and narrow down products. Powered by Gemini and Google’s 50-billion-item Shopping Graph (refreshed over 2 billion times per hour), AI Mode turns general shopping queries into visually rich, dynamic result panels.

For example, ask for a “blue backpack,” and AI Mode responds with personalized product images and listings. Add specifics, like a ‘trip to rainy Scotland,’ and it launches a query fan-out, running parallel searches to determine what features (e.g., waterproofing, portability) matter most. The results update in real time, surfacing highly relevant options from trusted retailers.

This capability is designed to streamline how people shop by reducing guesswork, enabling real-time refinement, and surfacing products that align with nuanced intent.

Smarter Everyday AI, Beyond Shopping

Google’s announcements at I/O 2025 extended well beyond retail. Across its ecosystem, the company introduced AI-powered features designed to simplify daily tasks and decision-making. In Gmail, users will see AI-organized summaries and smart follow-up suggestions. Google Docs adds context-aware writing assistance, offering quick answers and document insights without switching tabs. On Android, a more conversational call screening assistant now engages callers using natural language. In Search, Gemini now supports multi-step reasoning, enabling more complex queries to be answered in a single exchange. And for e-commerce, Google’s new virtual try-on lets users upload a full-body photo to see how clothes from billions of listings would look on them, bringing personalization to a new level in online shopping.

These features share a common thread: AI that works quietly in the background to reduce friction. Whether you’re searching, writing, scheduling, or deciding; Google is positioning AI as a proactive co-pilot, not a tool you have to ask for help.

How Users Were Already Using Google Gemini

Based on a March 2025 Morgan Stanley survey, this data reflects how users were already engaging with Gemini — primarily for product research, price comparison, and shopping — before Google’s latest AI shopping features were announced.

Limited U.S. Rollout

These features; agentic checkout, AI Mode discovery, and virtual try-on are rolling out gradually in the U.S. Google has not announced international availability. Agentic checkout will be introduced over the coming months across product listings. AI Mode’s query fan-out and dynamic visuals will follow a similar timeline. The try-on tool is live now in Search Labs for eligible users.

While still in early stages, these tools suggest a future where AI removes complexity from shopping without compromising control, streamlining the decision journey from inspiration to checkout.

Key takeaways for fintech startups:

These updates reflect broader shifts in AI design that fintech leaders should watch closely.

• Agentic checkout reflects a new model of user-controlled automation: AI completes purchases only after conditions are met and approval is given.
  
  
• Query fan-out shows how simultaneous AI reasoning can surface more relevant results, with potential applications beyond retail.
  
  
• Google’s approach preserves trust by anchoring automation in explicit user action; an important principle for fintech UX.
  
  
• These tools emphasize scalability + personalization, with clear lessons for product teams building AI-assisted workflows.
  

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