In the first quarter of 2025, retail sites in the US saw a 393 percent increase in traffic from AI sources, as more consumers use AI to initiate their shopping journeys.
The figures are published by Adobe, which analyzed more than one trillion visits to US retail sites and combined its findings with a survey of more than 5,000 US respondents to provide additional context on how consumers are leveraging AI for online journeys.
The research confirmed similar patterns among industries beyond retail. In travel, traffic from AI sources increased 233 percent year-on-year, in financial services the increase totalled 158 percent year-on-year, in media and entertainment it stood at 84 percent year-on-year, and in tech and software, 63 percent year-on-year.
The two-year trend by industry is visualized in this graphic from Adobe.
As confirmed by CX Network's latest research, AI-first customer journeys are front of mind for CX practitioners. When asked to select three CX trends and three customer behaviors influencing their work between 2026 and 2030, AI-first customer journeys emerged among the top responses.
One positive from Adobe's research is that traffic from AI sources is still referring – for now. ChatGPT's Instant Checkout and Google's Gemini updates and agentic commerce suite allow shoppers to buy direct in the chat interface, without visiting the retailer's site. As these tools become more popular, referral traffic from AI – and therefore total traffic – to retail sites will decline.
How LLMs became digital shopping assistants
Adobe's research shows this trend has been building for the last two years.
Over the last two Golden Quarters – the final quarter of the calendar year, which includes Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the post-festive sales – traffic from generative AI and LLMs has skyrocketed.
In 2024, Adobe reported a 1,300 percent spike in traffic from AI sources. On Cyber Monday that year traffic from generative AI was 1,950 percent higher than in 2023.
That year's research also found 39 percent of the 5,000 surveyed consumers had used generative AI for online shopping, with 53 percent saying they planned to do so in 2024.
Back then, consumers said they were using generative AI to conduct research pre-purchase (55 percent), ask for product recommendations (47 percent), find deals (43 percent), inspire gift ideas (35 percent), and search for unique products (35 percent).
In 2025, year-on-year traffic growth from AI slowed – as expected as the base line rises – while the number of consumers using AI assistants held firm.
During the 2025 Golden Quarter, AI traffic was up 693 percent year-on-year and 39 percent of consumers said they have used AI before for online shopping. As many as 85 percent said it improved their experience.
Adobe said the results highlight "the durable value that AI is delivering in the ecommerce space, shortening the time it takes for consumers to find what they need or locate relevant discounts".
Earlier this year, Braze surveyed 200 UK marketing executives at VP-level or higher from B2C companies with a minimum annual revenue of US$10 million as well as 2,000 UK-based consumers. It found that 14 percent of consumers already use AI agents to interact with brands and make purchases, and that this figure is on track to more than double to 37 percent by end of 2026.
Nicolas Berliner, general manager for the UK at Braze, said: "AI agents shortlist options and personalize recommendations in real time. In some cases, these autonomous companions will act on the consumer's behalf to complete purchases. This pushes brands to rethink how they show up, focusing on composable intelligence and structured first-party data to stand out from the noise of their digital and physical lives."
Meanwhile, data published by the OECD showed more than one third of individuals used generative AI tools in 2025.
AI traffic shows stronger conversion rates
The big shift in AI-first journeys is that customers no longer begin their searches with company names or product categories, but with intent. This is evident in Adobe's research, which also found AI traffic converts better than non-AI traffic. In terms of conversion, it even beats paid search and email marketing.
In March 2026, AI traffic converted to sales 42 percent better – marking a record high among Adobe's data – and AI-driven revenue per visit was 37 percent higher than traffic from other sources. In March 2025, conversion was 38 percent worse when compared with other channels, demonstrating that AI-first journeys are no longer about curiosity and experimentation; LLMs are now trusted shopping assistants.
The rise in AI conversion is reinforced by Adobe's data on engagement and bounce rates. Data from March 2026 showed that once an individual lands on a US retail site from an AI source, the engagement rate is 12 percent higher compared to non-AI traffic.
These shoppers are essentially spending more time on the website, by around 48 percent, and browsing 13 percent more pages per visit.
Discoverability: The next challenge
Despite the positive results, Adobe says many sites are still not optimized for AI-search. The core elements of this are GEO and AEO, generative engine optimization and answer engine optimization.
According to data captured by Adobe's AI content visibility checking tool, the average readability score for a homepage in the retail sector averages 75 percent, meaning roughly a quarter of the content on homepages has not been optimized for LLMs. However, the range spans from 82.5 percent for the best-performing US retail sites to 54.2 percent for the lowest-performing.
Category-level pages, such as appliances or men's apparel, scored at a similar level at 74 percent. One area of notable challenge is individual product pages, which scored 66 percent. Retailers have thousands of SKUs, and the data shows much of the content is currently invisible to LLMs.
Other pages of note include:
- Store locator (73%)
- Customer service/help center (79%)Co
- Contact us (81%)
- Returns/exchanges (82%)
- Loyalty/membership (78%)
- FAQ (80%)
Adobe's insights stated: "Overall, top performers demonstrate a more comprehensive content strategy, ensuring broader topic coverage and stronger alignment with AI-driven discovery."
Quick links
- Reinventing search and discovery within a digital ecosystem
- The invisible shelf: How GEO is revolutionizing customer experience perceptions