Walmart to Let Shoppers Buy Inside ChatGPT Under OpenAI Deal

Walmart is moving its checkout into the chat window. The retailer said on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2026, that it has partnered with OpenAI so customers and Sam's Club members can shop inside ChatGPT and pay with Instant Checkout, without leaving the conversation.

A shopper will be able to ask ChatGPT to plan a week of dinners, restock cleaning supplies or find a birthday gift, get a suggested basket built from Walmart's range, and buy it on the spot. Walmart handles the packing and delivery from there. The feature connects to a shopper's existing Walmart or Sam's Club account, and the companies say it will roll out later this fall.

What shoppers can buy, and what they cannot

The starting range covers clothing, entertainment, packaged food and household goods, along with products from outside sellers on Walmart's marketplace. One big department is missing at launch: fresh food. Bloomberg reported that fresh groceries will not be part of the service when it opens.

Agentic commerce, with Sparky on the side

Walmart calls the new model agentic commerce: software that learns how a household shops, plans ahead and predicts what it needs, instead of waiting to be asked. Chief executive Doug McMillon said the old pattern of a search bar and a long list of item responses is about to change. "There is a native AI experience coming that is multi-media, personalized and contextual," he said. Sam Altman, cofounder and chief executive of OpenAI, said the two companies want to "make everyday purchases a little simpler."

The ChatGPT tie-up runs alongside Walmart's own assistant. Sparky, a generative AI helper inside the Walmart app, already suggests products and condenses customer reviews. Walmart says AI has cut its fashion production timelines by up to 18 weeks and customer care resolution times by up to 40 percent. The company is also rolling out ChatGPT Enterprise to its teams and was one of the first partners to adopt OpenAI Certifications for staff training.

Shares jump, and rivals are already moving

Investors approved. Walmart shares rose 5 percent on Tuesday to close at $107.21, a record high, Reuters reported. The deal follows OpenAI's September partnerships with Etsy and Shopify, which first brought Instant Checkout shopping to ChatGPT, and it answers Amazon, which got a head start in chat-based shopping with its Rufus assistant.

Early numbers suggest the audience is drifting toward chat on its own. SimilarWeb data cited by Reuters showed 15 percent of Walmart's referral traffic in September came from ChatGPT, up from 9.5 percent in August, though chat still drove less than 1 percent of Walmart's total web traffic. The stakes are wide either way: about 270 million customers and members visit Walmart stores and websites each week, so even a small change in where a shop starts moves a lot of baskets.