Microsoft and PayPal have announced their collaboration to launch Copilot Checkout, a new solution that enables users to discover, compare, and purchase products without leaving the conversational experience of Copilot.
The objective is twofold: for the user, the goal is to reduce friction in the purchasing process and shorten the distance between intent and conversion; for the online store, it aims to simplify its adaptation to the world of artificial intelligence and reduce abandoned carts. All of this takes place within Microsoft’s AI assistant.
As Mike Edmonds, Vice President of Agentic Commerce at PayPal, explains, “This alliance will help our vast ecosystem of tens of millions of merchants grow efficiently, while also providing consumers with a pleasant and intuitive shopping experience when paying with PayPal.”
This announcement is accompanied by another significant development for eCommerce, the launch of Brand Agents, AI-powered shopping assistants that serve as the brand’s voice within its own website. Both initiatives are aligned towards the same objective: turning conversations into sales at the very moment the user is making their purchase decision.
Copilot Checkout allows purchases to be completed directly within Copilot, with no redirects, no need to open multiple tabs, and without losing the customer along the way. Buyers can ask questions, compare options, resolve doubts, and make payment within the same conversational flow, relying on PayPal’s payment infrastructure.
From the merchant’s perspective, the brand remains the official seller and retains control over the transaction, customer data, and the commercial relationship. This enables merchants to take advantage of this new channel without sacrificing ownership of the customer relationship or brand identity.
PayPal is responsible for powering merchants’ inventory, branded payments, guest checkout, and payments with either credit cards or PayPal Wallet, beginning with Copilot.com and with plans to expand to other channels where Copilot is already available.
Initial results demonstrate a direct impact on conversion. According to data from Microsoft, purchase journeys that include Copilot resulted in 53% more purchases within 30 minutes of interaction compared to those that do not. Furthermore, when there is purchase intent, journeys with Copilot are 194% more likely to result in a purchase.
The partnership between Microsoft and PayPal combines AI-driven discovery with a payment infrastructure that is widely recognized by both consumers and merchants. Copilot is no longer just a tool for information search; it is now integrated throughout the entire purchase journey, from inspiration to final payment.
Copilot Checkout is already available in the United States, with partner activations in PayPal, Shopify, and Stripe, and more retailers joining over the coming month.
For Shopify, merchants will be able to sell automatically on Copilot Checkout without the need to develop additional integrations or install new applications.
Looking towards the future, the company is already collaborating with Mastercard and Visa to include solutions such as Mastercard Agent Pay and Visa Intelligent Commerce.
Alongside the launch of Copilot Checkout, Microsoft has introduced Brand Agents, AI-powered shopping assistants that integrate with online stores and provide users with a natural and seamless experience, just like a skilled salesperson would in a physical store.
These agents are knowledgeable about the catalog, answer common questions, compare products, and help the customer progress towards purchasing, all while respecting each brand’s tone and personality. The intention is not to drive the user to checkout from the very first interaction, but rather to assist them in making informed decisions with confidence.
Initial data show meaningful improvements in both interaction and conversion. For certain merchants, sessions assisted by Brand Agents multiply conversion rates compared to unassisted visits.
The Brand Agents leverage Microsoft Clarity, Microsoft’s free analytics tool that enables merchants to analyze user behavior using heatmaps, session recordings, and performance metrics.
This provides eCommerce businesses with an additional layer of insight to understand how AI-assisted conversations perform, compare them with organic traffic, and refine commercial strategy based on real data.
Copilot Checkout is currently being rolled out in the United States on Copilot.com and leverages existing integrations with major eCommerce and payment platforms. If you operate an eCommerce business in the United States, here is what you should know to use this feature:
Brand Agents is already available to merchants selling on Shopify and, as previously mentioned, is supported by Microsoft Clarity for performance analytics. Therefore, if you wish to begin using this feature, the first step is to install Microsoft Clarity on your eCommerce store, a free tool that is compatible with Shopify.
Once Clarity is activated, you may join the waitlist directly through the platform to gain access to Brand Agents. If you are already using Clarity, the process is immediate.
The final step is to configure your brand’s voice and catalog, since Brand Agents are trained using this information to provide consistent recommendations and conversations that align with the in-store experience.
With Copilot Checkout and Brand Agents, Microsoft and PayPal are accelerating a trend that has already been gaining traction. Shopping is becoming conversational, contextual, and increasingly integrated into AI assistants. For merchants, the opportunity lies in being present at the decisive moment when the user shifts from interest to action.
Now, the question is which brands will appear in search results and which stores will be prepared to sell in these new experiences, leveraging a channel that is already part of consumers’ daily lives.
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