SAN JOSE, CALIF. — AI-powered shopping, which has been rising since mid-2024, hit a new inflection point in October, according to Adobe Analytics, surpassing non-AI paths for transaction conversion rates.
New data from Adobe shows generative AI is driving higher conversion. In October, traffic from generative AI sources was up 1,200% year-over-year. Additionally, consumers who visited a retail site using gen AI were 16% more likely to convert than those using non-AI means such as paid search, affiliates and partners, email, organic search and social media.
In his blog post on the topic, Vivek Pandya, director of Adobe Digital Insights, noted October was the second month in a row where conversion was higher for AI-generated traffic.
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In July and August, however, AI conversion trailed non-AI sources by 23% and 9%, respectively. Pandya writes the upward trend in September and October “shows that consumers are increasingly comfortable completing a transaction directly after an AI-powered chat or browser experience, condensing the path between research/consideration and final purchase.”
Adobe’s research finds AI-using shoppers are 13.6% more engaged that those arriving at a site from non-AI sources. Specifically, they are exploring more content, have longer visits and are less likely to leave immediately.
Also in October, e-commerce spending rose to $88.7 billion, an increase of 8.2% year-over-year. Mobile drove the majority of online spending, with a 51.4% share or $45.6 billion. Another growth area was buy now, pay later, which was up 7.6% from 2024, accounting for $7.1 billion in e-commerce business.
Adobe’s analysis showed online spending for October spiked during Amazon’s Prime Day event Oct. 7 and 8, which fostered discounts across many U.S. retailers. Consumers spent $9.1 billion over the two-day period, up 7.3% year-over-year.
Holiday décor spending was up 130% for October vs. average spending levels in September. Home was also mentioned as a popular category, with sales of refrigerators and freezers up 55%.
Adobe Analytics data related to e-commerce covers more than 1 trillion visits to U.S. retail sites across 100 SKUs in 18 product categories.
