The rise of agentic commerce

This is the first article in a new Worldpay series exploring agentic commerce—a transformative shift where AI agents take the lead in shopping, payments and customer decision-making.

The way we buy things is about to change forever. We’re entering a new phase in commerce, one driven not by people tapping and swiping but by intelligent software acting on their behalf.

This shift is called agentic commerce. And it isn’t just another tech trend. It’s a foundational change in how commerce happens: who initiates it, how decisions get made and what merchants need to do to stay relevant.

What is agentic commerce?

At its core, agentic commerce is when AI-powered agents, not people, navigate the buying process. These agents can search for options, compare prices, manage preferences and even make purchases without direct human input.

That means:

• Consumers don’t need to search or compare manually; they can assign that task to a trusted agent
• Merchants aren’t just marketing to people; they’re influencing algorithms
• Payments are no longer reactive; they’re autonomous, fast and programmable

In agentic commerce, the “buyer” isn’t a person. It’s a machine acting in service of one.

The leap from e-commerce to agentic buying

Traditional e-commerce was built for humans—people who browse, evaluate and click. Agentic commerce turns that model on its head.

Instead of prompting users to act, we’re empowering software to act for them. These agents operate based on user-defined rules such as budget, brand loyalty, ethical preferences or delivery speed.

Let's look at an example of how this might play out: Sophie cares about sustainability. She prefers to buy from brands that use recycled materials, offer carbon-neutral shipping and treat workers fairly. In the past, that meant spending hours scrolling through sites, comparing certifications and reading reviews.

Now? Her AI shopping agent does it for her.

Sophie sets her preferences once — budget, favorite brands, sustainability standards — and the agent handles the rest. It scans product catalogs, verifies certifications, compares delivery options and even factors in loyalty rewards.

When Sophie needs new running shoes, her agent automatically finds the best fit that meets her ethical standards, gets the best price and arranges carbon-neutral shipping — all while she’s at work.

For Sophie, buying becomes effortless and aligned with her values. For merchants, winning her business now means structuring their product data so agents like hers can find, trust and select them.

"AI agents aren’t just digital assistants. They’re decision-makers."

AI agents aren’t just digital assistants. They’re decision-makers. And that changes everything.

• Discovery happens through GenAI interfaces, not search engines and ads
• Purchase decisions rely on data, not impulse
• Trust is earned through transparency, not just messaging

This isn’t speculation. The early stages are already here.

Why now, and why it matters

The ingredients for agentic commerce have quietly come together:

• Generative AI tools that understand user context and intent
• Secure digital identities that verify and authorize agents
• Embedded payments infrastructure that supports real-time, machine-driven transactions

Consumers are ready. According to a recent Chain Store Age survey, 54% of Gen Z respondents said they feel comfortable letting AI make purchases for them. More than half of respondents said trusting AI with purchases saves time, especially for low-risk or routine items.

This changes the game for merchants. You’re no longer just competing for a shopper’s attention. You’re competing for an algorithm’s preference.

It also shifts what readiness looks like.

"Relevance is no longer a matter of messaging—it’s a function of math."

Merchants will need to rethink storefronts, reformat data and integrate machine-aware trust signals. Platforms, meanwhile, must deliver agent-compatible commerce tools that are fast, secure and flexible.

In this new paradigm, speed and precision matter more than aesthetics. Relevance is no longer a matter of messaging—it’s a function of math.

What merchants can do now

Agentic commerce isn’t in the distant future. It’s already unfolding. Leading platforms and fintechs are building agent functionality today. To prepare, merchants should:

• Structure catalog data for AI readability—clear specs, consistent taxonomies and machine-parsable formats
• Adapt go-to-market motion for agentic buyers by aligning policies, pricing mechanics and loyalty strategies to agent-driven preferences
• Partner with payments providers who understand the complexity of autonomous transaction rails

Winning in this new model means being admired not just by people but by the systems that act for them.

Why Worldpay is paying attention

At Worldpay, we’re building the infrastructure to support agent-led commerce—secure, scalable and ready for the next wave of digital buyers.

We’ve seen commerce evolve from in-person to online, from desktop to mobile and now from human to agent. Each shift demanded a new approach to payments. Agentic commerce is no different.

If the future of shopping is driven by intelligent software, the future of payments must be built to match.

Coming next in this series:

How AI shopping agents will reshape payments

We’ll explore the importance of tokenization, the breakdown of traditional approaches in identity and fraud, and the challenges in retaining robust chargeback policies.