It had been speculated that Google could lose its lucrative search revenue if users migrated to AI systems, but it seems to be taking the lead in enabling commerce — and perhaps eventually advertising — through AI as well.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced today the launch of the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), a new open standard designed for what the company calls “agentic commerce” — the era when AI agents help consumers navigate the entire shopping journey from discovery to purchase.
The protocol was built in partnership with major retail players including Shopify, Etsy, Wayfair, Target and Walmart, and has garnered endorsements from more than 20 additional industry leaders. UCP is available starting today.
From Keywords to Conversations
Google has been repositioning its search and shopping infrastructure for the AI age. The company’s Shopping Graph, which launched in 2021, now contains over 50 billion product listings with real-time updates on inventory, prices and reviews. More than 2 billion of those listings refresh every hour.
With the introduction of AI Mode in Google Search, the company is seeing shopping journeys evolve from keyword-based searches to natural language conversations. “While you once had to sort through pages of results, AI can do the hard work of narrowing down exactly what you’re most interested in buying,” Pichai explained.
The Shopping Graph has also been integrated into the Gemini app to enhance its ability to handle shopping-related queries.
A Common Language for AI Commerce
The Universal Commerce Protocol aims to solve a fundamental challenge in the emerging agentic commerce ecosystem: enabling different systems and services to communicate effectively with each other.
“The industry needs a protocol that works at global scale and takes into account the nuances of commerce journeys, and this is a critical building block for it,” Pichai wrote.
Importantly, UCP is designed to be interoperable with existing industry standards including Agent2Agent (A2A), the Agent Payments Protocol, and Model Context Protocol. The protocol is also built to work across multiple verticals, not just retail.
Native Checkout Coming to Google Surfaces
The first major implementation of UCP will be native checkout functionality, launching soon on Google’s AI Mode in Search and the Gemini app. This will enable users to complete purchases directly within AI conversations without leaving Google’s platforms.
The system is designed to preserve the merchant relationship throughout the transaction. For example, if a customer searches for a suitcase from a specific brand like Monos, the protocol allows the retailer to offer personalized pricing for new customers or loyalty enrollment opportunities. Returning customers could receive special offers based on purchase history or complementary product suggestions at checkout.
Payment can be completed in a few taps via Google Pay, all while remaining in the conversational interface.
Critically, retailers remain the merchant of record throughout these transactions, allowing them to own and maintain customer relationships beyond a single purchase.
Building the Future of Retail
Google’s approach reflects more than two decades of partnership with retailers through various technology shifts. The company emphasizes that UCP was built with both retailer and customer needs in mind, keeping “the full customer relationship front and center — from the moments of discovery to decision and beyond.”
As AI agents become increasingly sophisticated in their ability to assist with shopping decisions, protocols like UCP may become essential infrastructure for e-commerce — much like how HTTPS became fundamental to web browsing.
For Google, the move represents a strategic bet that it can maintain its central role in online commerce even as search evolves from traditional links to AI-powered conversations. Rather than losing ground to AI disruption, the company appears to be positioning itself at the center of how AI-enabled shopping will work.