Google introduces the Universal Cart: add products from different websites and any Google service through a single process

Google I/O 2026, the annual developer conference organized by the tech giant, is generating major headlines this year thanks to the surprising wave of updates unveiled. In this article, I am going to tell you about a new feature related to the shopping experience on Google that combines agentic AI and a high degree of flexibility: the Universal Cart.

We’re introducing Universal Cart — a new hub for shopping on Google.

🛍️ It will work across merchants and across services.

🛒 You’ll be able to add things to your cart whether you’re shopping on Search, the @GeminiApp, @YouTube or @Gmail.

🛠️ The moment you add a product to… pic.twitter.com/MP8FreG6p1

— Google (@Google) May 19, 2026

A new shopping hub across Google’s different services

Universal Cart works like a smart cart that lets you add products from different merchants and websites while browsing Search, but also while using Gemini, YouTube, or Gmail.

When you add a product to the cart, this new Google feature begins to work in the background to optimize your shopping and product discovery experience. Powered by Gemini AI, Universal Cart can search for deals, detect price drops, provide information about a product’s price history, trigger alerts when an out-of-stock item is available again, detect incompatibilities between products, and more.

Universal Cart’s reasoning capabilities also extend to the checkout process. This feature integrates with Google Wallet, which means it is aware of your payment methods, their benefits (such as coupons or discounts), your loyalty programs, and more. As a result, it can suggest the best method for each situation and alert you to opportunities to save money or earn points available with each purchase.

And finally, we arrive at the payment stage. Universal Cart is built on the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), the open-source standard that allows AI agents to interact autonomously and securely with online stores. Thanks to this, as Google explains: “You can check out with Google Pay in just a few taps at many of your favorite brands, or transfer your items to the merchant’s website to complete your purchase.”

• More I/O updates: How Gemini Spark works, your personal AI agent on Google

When will Universal Cart begin rolling out?

Google has announced that it will begin enabling Universal Cart in Search and in the Gemini app in the United States this summer, while it will take a little longer to reach YouTube and Gmail. As for the rest of the world, no specific dates have been provided, but it is reasonable to expect that several months will pass before the company gives the green light to a broader rollout, since it will first want to validate the product and gather feedback in order to make the necessary improvements before bringing it to additional markets.

Google’s goal is for Universal Cart to work across all online stores. Some of the companies that have already confirmed compatibility with this feature for its upcoming launch include: Nike, Sephora, Target, Ulta Beauty, Walmart, Wayfair, and Shopify stores such as Fenty and Steve Madden.

Finally, it is worth noting that because it is built on models from the Gemini family, Universal Cart will benefit from the reasoning and intelligence improvements brought by future versions of this AI, allowing it to continue evolving over time.

Photo: Google and Canva