Tech companies are betting big on AI shopping, but Americans may already have bot fatigue as 72% don’t plan to use it for holiday gifts
Nearly three-quarters of Americans, or 72%, say they don’t plan to use AI tools for holiday shopping this year, up from 49% in 2025, according to a new Bank of America survey.
Key points
- “Gift shopping is personal, and people want to feel good about what they’re giving.” The survey found that 87% of Americans expect to spend the same amount or less on holiday shopping this year, while 63% said they base their spending strictly on their own budgets rather than what friends or family spend.
- Still, it’s an awkward moment for tech companies betting that shoppers will eventually trust AI to do more than recommend products, including making purchases on their behalf.
- Lora Monfared, head of consumer credit card products at Bank of America, said shoppers may be growing more selective about when AI is worth using, especially as they keep a closer eye on holiday spending.
And with holiday shopping competing for time that could be spent with family and friends, Kirk said some consumers may decide that letting AI handle the less personal tasks is a worthwhile trade-off.
Additional details
- Kirk said AI may have a more natural place in the less personal parts of shopping, such as finding coupons, comparing prices, or buying groceries and household supplies.
- The Bank of America survey found that 17% plan to use AI to compare prices or deals, 14% for gift ideas or inspiration, and 7% to write messages or cards.
- Google has introduced an AI-powered shopping cart, Meta’s Muse can search for products and prepare purchases for approval, and OpenAI’s new ChatGPT Wallet lets eligible users pay for purchases through an AI agent.
- Bank of America said it asked the AI shopping question the same way in both years, though the survey only measures intentions, and those tend to get flexible in the last-minute scramble before Christmas.
- Colleen Kirk, a professor of marketing and management at New York Institute of Technology, said the hesitation may have less to do with what AI can do than what shoppers feel they lose by using it.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
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