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OpenAI is developing a native payment checkout system within ChatGPT, signalling a bold step beyond conversational AI toward fully integrated digital commerce.
OpenAI tests payments through ChatGPT
According to multiple sources cited by the Financial Times, the initiative would allow users to complete purchases directly within the chatbot interface, creating an entirely new commercial layer to the platform.
Merchants participating in the scheme would fulfil orders via the embedded payments system and pay OpenAI a commission, introducing a novel revenue stream that capitalises on the chatbot’s heavy user traffic.
This marks a strategic pivot from OpenAI’s existing monetisation model, which relies primarily on paid subscriptions.
Checkout Feature
Though still in early stages, the checkout feature is being demonstrated to brands and select partners.
Notably, Shopify is among the collaborators involved in the trials, though neither company has officially commented on the project’s scope or timeline.
The two firms previously announced a partnership earlier this year, following the rollout of a shopping-focused upgrade to ChatGPT that enabled richer product displays and integrated reviews.
Until now, product links surfaced in ChatGPT would redirect users to third-party e-commerce websites.
But with the introduction of native checkout, OpenAI is positioning its AI as more than a search or content-generation tool – it’s building the foundations for a transaction engine inside the chatbot itself.
Open (AI) Ambition
The development aligns with OpenAI’s broader ambition to transform ChatGPT into a versatile, general-purpose digital assistant.
Embedding commerce within the chat interface elevates the bot from a passive adviser to an active economic actor – capable not only of recommending a product, but also completing the sale.
It’s a shift with deep implications for both consumers and retailers, especially if OpenAI succeeds in making payment interactions feel intuitive and trustworthy.
If successful, such a system could rewire how online retail functions.
Much like how the transition from desktop to mobile reshaped user behaviour, integrating payments into a conversational interface could make digital shopping feel seamless – and even second nature.
OpenAI
This pivot also comes at a time of accelerated financial expectations for the company.
OpenAI reported an annualised revenue run rate of $10 billion as of June 2025, nearly doubling from $5.5 billion in late 2024.
Yet despite its impressive topline growth, the company is understood to have recorded operating losses of around $5 billion last year.
The push into payments appears to be a calculated effort to diversify its income streams and establish more durable commercial infrastructure.
Speaking at a recent Bloomberg event, CEO Sam Altman reinforced the company’s forward-looking stance.
He dismissed fears of widespread job displacement, arguing that human ingenuity would remain central in an AI-augmented economy.
“Betting against human creativity is always a mistake,” he noted, adding that the challenge lies not in resisting change, but in adapting through new roles and economic models.
Though OpenAI has not confirmed when the checkout feature will launch publicly, the development reinforces a growing trend in AI: embedding transactional capabilities within platforms to maximise user value and monetisation.
Whether ChatGPT can become a trusted point-of-sale remains to be seen – but the direction of travel is clear. Commerce is coming to the conversation.
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