Shopify Says AI Referrals Tripled in 1 Year, Fueling 34 Million Sidekick Chats

1 articles · Updated · CNBC · Aug 5

Traffic and orders from AI platforms such as ChatGPT and Gemini to Shopify stores tripled over the past year, which President Harley Finkelstein said is accelerating customer discovery for merchants.
75% of AI-driven purchases in the quarter came from categories outside the top 100, a sign that AI search is helping smaller brands compete beyond traditional search channels.
34 million Sidekick conversations in the second quarter underscored rising use of Shopify’s AI assistant, which Finkelstein said helps new sellers reach their first five sales faster.
17% share gains after earnings added weight to Shopify’s AI push, with gross merchandise volume nearing $116 billion and topping 30% growth for a fifth straight quarter.