Streets Ahead: ChatGPT Shopping and Yelp’s AI Call Feature
In this week’s Streets Ahead update, SOCi discusses ChatGPT introducing direct shopping and Yelp testing AI-powered call handling.
ChatGPT’s New Shopping Experience
The News OpenAI has introduced a new augmented shopping experience inside ChatGPT, enabling users to browse and buy products directly within the platform. The feature showcases detailed product information, customer reviews, and direct purchase links across categories like fashion, beauty, home goods, and electronics. It rolled out to all ChatGPT users—including Free, Plus, and Pro—on Monday, April 28.
According to TechCrunch, ChatGPT’s shopping results are powered by structured metadata from third-party retail websites. While there’s no advertising involved yet, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has hinted at a possible affiliate program down the line.
Recent chatter about a Shopify integration lines up with this move. OpenAI has confirmed plans to let merchants feed product listings directly into ChatGPT, and has already partnered with several major retailers to make that a reality.
Why This Matters ChatGPT’s new shopping feature demonstrates strong performance in delivering personalized product recommendations. In a test focused on home composting, the tool effectively surfaced relevant and practical options.
As consumers grow increasingly frustrated by overloaded search results, misleading product claims, and unreliable reviews, ChatGPT’s ability to streamline discovery could position it as a competitive force against both Google and Amazon.
Marketers and eCommerce teams should ensure their websites are structured for optimal crawlability, as visibility in ChatGPT’s shopping results may become critical to product discovery in an AI-driven search environment.
Yelp Launching AI-Powered Call Feature
The News Yelp has announced plans to test a new AI call handling feature that allows businesses to automatically manage incoming phone calls. Built directly into the Yelp platform, the AI call handling can answer calls, schedule appointments, respond to service requests, and address customer questions.
In a demo video, a customer phoned an auto repair shop about an oil leak. The AI responded with follow-up questions, identified the issue as urgent, and gathered the caller’s contact information for further assistance.
Yelp says the feature is easy for businesses to set up. While the company confirmed it’s using advanced voice AI-powered technology, it has not revealed the identity of its AI provider.
Why This Matters The AI call feature will soon be piloted by local restaurants and service providers. However, it’s still unclear whether access to the service will require a Yelp Ads subscription, as has been the case with some of Yelp’s more advanced tools.
