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OpenAI just released Instant Checkout for ChatGPTa new feature that lets users directly make purchases within the ChatGPT interface. ChatGPT can now spend your money for you. Its a huge dealboth for users, brands, and the future of agentic AI. Heres why. Stickers at the ready Consumers are already enthusiastically turning to chatbots like ChatGPT to research products before deciding what to buy. As TechCrunch shared earlier this year, referrals from chatbots to top merchant websites are up almost 400% year over year. I personally used ChatGPT to research an $800+ laptop purchase this summer. Before, users could do their research in ChatGPT, but they needed to go directly to a merchants website to actually check out. Instant checkout seeks to close that loop by allowing you to buy products within ChatGPTs interfacesometimes with as little as a single click. I tested out the new system within hours of its launch. OpenAI initially rolled out Instant Checkout with a single merchant partner: Etsy. (Shopify retailers will apparently follow soon.) To see how it works, I fired up my ChatGPT interface and asked the bot to find me a Bichon Frise sticker on Etsy (Bichons are the best kind of dogand the kind I happen to have). After about 30 seconds of research, ChatGPT presented me with three different Bichon Frise sticker options. Helpfully, it suggested which sticker would be best for a water bottle, the back of my laptop, and other use cases. Before, I wouldve had to go to Etsys website to actually buy my sticker. Now, though, when I clicked on the one I liked best, a prominent Buy button appeared. Clicking it brought up a standard set of payment optionsGoogle Pay, Link payments, and the like. Selecting an existing credit card from my Google Pay account, I confirmed my address and pressed Buy. ChatGPT popped up a message saying it was communicating with Etsy. Seconds later, I got a purchase confirmation in my ChatGPT window. I had spent $4.81, and my Bichon Frise sticker was on the way! Why it matters Yes, the ability to purchase bespoke vinyl stickers using the worlds most powerful AI is neat. But in the bigger scheme of things, why does Instant Checkout matter? Firstly, instant checkout is significant because its not intended to be a one-off tool. Along with its launch, OpenAI rolled out a new open source protocoltermed the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP)that the company says will allow for direct communications between merchants and providers of chatbots like ChatGPT. By implementing ACP, merchants can make it easy for chatbot users to purchase things directly from them. The fact that OpenAI rolled out a fully formed protocol along with its new feature suggests theyre trying to build an ecosystem for chatbot shopping, not simply rake in a bit more revenue during the upcoming Black Friday season. The company clearly hopes that other chatbot builders will adopt its protocol, creating an ecosystem that will bring in a wide range of merchants. The release notes for Instant Checkout say that any merchant using the Stripe platform can enable the new protocol in a few clicks. Many retailers are doubtless scrambling to have their tech teams do that straight away. If OpenAI succeeds with this ambition, theyll put their tool in a place to compete with the Amazons and Walmarts of the worldnot just Google and other search engines. If chatbot shopping really takes off, it could become a whole new sales channel for merchants. The fact that it suppots small merchants and allows purchases in a single clickwithout an external merchant accountcould help to dramatically level the playing field for merchants and creators who struggle to compete with Amazon and other giants. The new protocol is also significant because it gives a clear why to the emerging discipline of Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). As Ive shared previously, brands are scrambling to get their products mentioned and recommended within chatbots. Before, though, many brands wondered if doing the work of GEO was really worth it. Referrals from AI bots are increasing rapidly, but theyre still tiny. Why invest money and resources in getting your brand into chatbots now? Why not wait and see what the future brings? With Instant Checkout, chatbots are now not just a research tool, but an actual source of revenue and sales. Its also far easier with a protocol like ACP to attribute purchases directly back to a chat. That will make brands far more willing to throw money at generative engine optimization in an effort to get not only mentions, but actual sales from the bots. I already predicted a generative engine optimization craze before Instant Checkout rolled outthe new feature only deepens the appeal of GEO. Useful agents? Finally, instant checkout represents the newest direction for the concept of AI agentswhich has seen feverish excitement in Silicon Valley, but not much application in the real world. Its cool to watch a computer research your flight to Atlanta or plan out a lunch for you. But most people probably wont actually use AI to do those things. If an AI can actually close the loop and directly make purchases on your behalf, though, that might make AI agents worth using. Imagine asking ChatGPT to plan your kids firetruck themed birthday party (the kind of thing many parents, myself included, already do). If the system just gave you some ideas for cake toppers and placemats, that would be neat, but of limited value. If it could list all of the items you needed to make an awesome party, get your permission to buy them from 10 different merchants at once, and then have them all sent to your door with a single click, that would be a much more useful tool. People already use OpenAIs Deep Researchone of the only successful applications of agentic AI technologyto explore new topics or summarize news. With Instant Checkout OpenAI may have created another agentic AI tool that normal people will actually use. OpenAI has already proven itself adept at spending gobs of money from venture capital backers and partners like Microsoft. With Instant Checkout, its ready to start spending yours, too.
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E-Commerce
Wholesale Produce Supply, a food supplier based in Minneapolis, has recalled more than two dozen varieties of its fresh cut and processed cantaloupe products due to a risk of contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced. According to a notice posted by the FDA on Monday, September 29, no illnesses have been reported to date, but Listeria has the potential to cause serious infections. Here’s what to know: Which products are affected by the recall? Wholesale Produce Supply fresh cut cantaloupe was sold to distributors in Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wisconsin, who may have distributed the product to other states. The impacted products were sold under two brands: Harvest Cuts and Fresh and Finest. They were distributed to “traditional grocery locations.” The recall notice does not name specific retailers. Fast Company reached out to Wholesale Produce Supply for additional details and will update this story if we hear back. Affected products were packed in traditional plastic clamshell containers. Some packages included only cantaloupe, while others featured cantaloupe mixed with other fresh-cut fruits. The potential Listeria contamination was discovered during routine testing performed by the company, according to the FDA. Wholesale Produce Supply has suspended production and distribution of the affected lot and is investigating the cause of the problem. The company has recalled the following retail products. You can find the full product descriptions, UPC codes, and lot numbers on the FDA website. Cantaloupe and Honeydew (12-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks (8-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks (16-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks (6-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks F&F (12-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks (5-pound) Cantaloupe Spears (16-ounce) Fruit Medley (8-ounce) Fruit Medley F&F (12-ounce) Fruit Mix (16-ounce) Fruit Mix (6-ounce) Fruit Mix CHWG (MCT) (5-pound) Fruit Salad (16-ounce) Fruit Salad (6-ounce) Fruit Tray CHPG w/ Dip HC RND (2-pound) Fruit Tray w/ Strawberries HC (2-pound) Fruit Tray w/ Watermelons HC (2.5-pound) Fruit Tray w/ Watermelons HC (2.5-pound) Luau Blend Fruit Mix F&F (10-ounce) Melon Mix (16-ounce) Melon Mix (6-ounce) Melon Mix Bowl (48-ounce) Melon Mix Bowl & Grapes (48-ounce) Melon Mix CHW (MCT) (5-pound) Melon Mix Spears (16-ounce) Consumers should not eat the recalled product Customers who have purchased affected Harvest Cuts or Fresh and Finest products should not consume them. Rather, return the product to the place of purchase for a full refund. If you have any questions, contact Wholesale Produce Supply by calling (612) 378-2025. Some people are more at risk of Listeria infection Consuming foods contaminated with Listeria can lead to infection, which can be potentially serious and even fatal. According to the Mayo Clinic, healthy people rarely become very ill from Listeria infection. However, pregnant women, adults 65 and older, and people with weakened immune systems are more at risk for infection. As reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Listeria infection is “the third leading cause of death from food borne illness in the United States.”
Category:
E-Commerce
Charlie Javice, the founder of a startup company that promised to revolutionize the way college students apply for financial aid, was sentenced Monday to more than seven years in prison for cheating JPMorgan Chase out of $175 million by greatly exaggerating how many students it served.Javice, 33, was convicted in March of duping the banking giant when it bought her company, called Frank, in the summer of 2021. She made false records that made it seem like Frank had over 4 million customers when it had fewer than 300,000.Addressing the court before she was sentenced, Javice, who was in her mid-20s when she founded the company, said she was “haunted that my failure has transformed something meaningful into something infamous.”Sometimes speaking through tears, she said she “made a choice that I will spend my entire life regretting.”Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein largely dismissed arguments by Javice’s lawyer, Ronald Sullivan, that he should be lenient because the negotiations that led to Frank’s sale pitted “a 28-year-old versus 300 investment bankers from the largest bank in the world.”Still, the judge criticized the bank, saying “they have a lot to blame themselves” after failing to do adequate due diligence. He quickly added, though, that he was “punishing her conduct and not JPMorgan’s stupidity.”Javice was among a number of young tech executives who vaulted to fame with supposedly disruptive or transformative companies, only to see them collapse amid questions about whether they had engaged in puffery and fraud while dealing with investors.Her prosecution drew comparisons to the case against Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of a blood testing company, Theranos, that collapsed amid fraud allegations.Javice, who lives in Florida, has been free on $2 million bail since her 2023 arrest. The judge said she could remain free while she appeals the verdict. She was convicted of conspiracy, bank fraud and wire fraud charges. Her lawyers had argued that JPMorgan went after Javice because it had buyer’s remorse.A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business, Javice founded Frank to launch software that promised to simplify the arduous process of filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, a complex government form used by students to apply for aid for college or graduate school.Frank’s backers included venture capitalist Michael Eisenberg. The company said its offering, akin to online tax preparation software, could help students maximize financial aid while making the application process less painful.The company promoted itself as a way for financially needy students to obtain more aid faster, in return for a few hundred dollars in fees. Javice appeared regularly on cable news programs to boost Frank’s profile, once appearing on Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list before JPMorgan bought the startup in 2021.Sullivan told Hellerstein that his client was very different from Holmes because what she created actually worked, unlike Holmes, “who did not have a real company” and whose product “in fact endangered patients.” Sullivan said the bank rushed its negotiations because it feared another bank would acquire Frank first.A prosecutor, Micah Fergenson, though, said JPMorgan “didn’t get a functioning business” in exchange for its investment. “They acquired a crime scene.”Fergenson said Javice was driven by greed when she saw that she could pocket $29 million from the sale of her company.“Ms. Javice had it dangling in front of her and she lied to get it,” he said.And in seeking a long prison sentence for Javice, prosecutors cited a 2022 text she had sent to a colleague in which she called it “ridiculous” that Holmes got over 11 years in prison in the Theranos case.Prosecutors added that the message was “desperately needed” because of “an alarming trend of founders and executives of small startup companies engaging in fraud, including making misrepresentations about their companies’ core products or services, in order to make their companies attractive targets for investors and/or buyers.” Larry Neumeister, Associated Press
Category:
E-Commerce
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