PayPal just launched a major upgrade to its Honey browser extension, integrating with OpenAI's ChatGPT to help users find better deals while shopping. The move puts PayPal directly in competition with OpenAI's own shopping ambitions as both companies race to dominate AI-powered commerce. Users can now get real-time pricing, merchant comparisons, and exclusive offers when they ask ChatGPT shopping questions.
PayPal is making its biggest bet yet on AI-powered shopping, announcing that its popular Honey browser extension will now work directly with ChatGPT to help users find deals and compare prices in real-time.
The integration works seamlessly - when users ask ChatGPT about products they want to buy, Honey's extension automatically displays links to recommended items along with current pricing, merchant options, and available offers. But here's the clever part: the system can also spot when ChatGPT's recommendations might have overlooked major retailers and surface those additional options to consumers.
"The agentic shopping integrations are designed to be AI agnostic," PayPal told TechCrunch, though they're starting with OpenAI's ChatGPT before expanding to other AI platforms. The features aim to help consumers compare pricing more effectively while giving merchants new ways to reach shoppers through personalized offers.
The timing couldn't be more strategic. Just yesterday, OpenAI announced its own direct challenge to Amazon and Google with a new agentic shopping system that includes "Instant Checkout" features. While OpenAI's system currently only supports Etsy with Shopify merchants coming "soon," it signals a clear shift in how people might shop in the AI era.
This puts PayPal in an interesting position - partnering with the same company that's potentially trying to eat its lunch. The reality is that shopping behavior is already changing. Instead of starting their product research on Amazon or Google, many users are now turning to AI chatbots first. Honey, which built its reputation on finding deals during traditional web browsing, needs to adapt or risk becoming irrelevant.
The Honey integration is part of PayPal's broader push into what they call "agentic commerce." The company recently partnered with Google on similar initiatives and has rolled out an agentic commerce platform, MCP server, and Agent Toolkit. They've even struck smaller deals like offering free Perplexity premium subscriptions and access to their new Comet browser.
