"In the offline era, consumers chose one item from dozens on the shelf. In the digital era, they had to directly compare thousands or tens of thousands of products, and algorithms emerged to help with that choice. In the coming era of AI shopping agents, the options will be compressed again, and the structure may shift further so that agents even complete the purchase on behalf of the customer. Corporations that respond nimbly to the new changes will seize the opportunity."
James Jang, CEO of Gmarket Co., said this in a keynote speech titled "The conditions of choice in the AI era: Changes in consumer standards and market order reshaped by AI" at the "2026 ChosunBiz Consumer and Retail Forum" held at the Westin Josun Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 16th. Jang said, "If AI comes to handle not only search, comparison, and recommendations in shopping but also the purchasing process, the way consumers and products are connected could fundamentally change."
Jang focused on the "AI shopping agent" among the various impacts AI will have on e-commerce. He said an AI agent specialized for shopping will take on the role of finding, comparing, and recommending products on behalf of customers.
He said, "Existing algorithms aided product exposure based on search terms, clicks, and purchase histories accumulated within a platform," adding, "AI agents synthesize diverse signals—product information and reviews, price, seller credibility, customer preferences—to present fewer choices and can even complete the purchase."
In that case, the way brands and manufacturers get chosen by consumers also changes, he explained. Jang said, "AI agents do not respond to emotional factors," adding, "People can be influenced by product pages, ads, reviews, and influencer recommendations, but AI judges based on objective product strengths, the consistency of reviews, and the fit with consumer preferences."
Jang emphasized that brands and manufacturers should rebuild product information in a way AI can read. He said, "Differentiated functions and value propositions must be clear, and detailed information, metadata, and reviews should be structured so AI can easily recognize them," adding, "If search engine optimization (SEO) was important before, AI optimization will be even more necessary going forward."
Jang, however, projected that AI will not replace every shopping experience. While categories with many repeat purchases, like daily necessities or grocery shopping, may be quickly entrusted to AI, areas where taste and enjoyment are crucial—such as fashion, cosmetics, and ingredients—may retain the experience of choosing directly.
Jang said, "Shopping is fundamentally enjoyable," adding, "Consumers will hand off products they are less interested in to AI, and dig deeper into the fields they love. From a platform's perspective, strategies should be built with users' preferences in mind."
Jang also outlined hurdles that must be overcome as AI-based shopping spreads. He said that while AI shopping agents are already close from a technical standpoint, there is a psychological barrier for consumers to immediately hand over purchasing authority and their wallets.
He said, "Most AI today remains at the stage of a research helper that gathers and compares information," adding, "More trust is needed for consumer confidence to build. Just as you would assign more important tasks to a new employee as trust accumulates, consumers will entrust more important purchases to AI shopping agents as their trust builds."
He also pointed out AI's inherent limits. Because AI cannot directly use or experience products, recommendation accuracy can be limited for new products with little data or for products where user experience is crucial. He also cited as a problem the difficulty of fully filtering out incorrect inputs, such as fake reviews, false advertising, and fabricated transaction volumes.
Despite these limits, Jang sees Korea as a market where changes in AI commerce could appear fastest. He said, "In South Korea, digitalization has advanced rapidly not only in shopping but also in transportation, services, travel, and administration, and data spanning all age groups has been accumulated," adding, "It is an excellent environment for AI to be introduced first."
Jang said, "Whenever a new technology emerges and the paradigm shifts, new winners have appeared alongside companies that were already strong," adding, "Ultimately, more important than which corporations or which industries is how quickly they respond to change. In the AI era, anyone can be a winner."