TikTok announced on Monday that it is launching an AI shopping assistant and a new in-app checkout feature. The tools let users ask questions about products and buy directly from brands without leaving the app.
The company shared the news in an update for advertisers. The new tools are part of its push to grow shopping on the platform.
How the AI Shopping Assistant Works
TikTok describes its new Shopping Assistant as a conversational AI agent. It is designed to help users find and buy products.
The company says the assistant understands context. It also remembers a user's preferences and needs throughout the conversation.
The assistant offers real-time shopping help. This includes product details, shipping information, sizing, and availability.
It can also help users complete a purchase. Shoppers can get answers to their questions in the same place where they first see a product.
One-Click Checkout Comes to the For You Feed
The new checkout feature lets users buy directly from a brand with one click. Purchases can be made from the For You feed, which is the app's main video feed run by its algorithm.
This means users do not need to visit an outside website to finish a sale. The shopping process can start and end inside TikTok.
TikTok says the features are being built with commerce platforms and payment providers. These include Salesforce, Shopify, Shoplazza, and Stripe, among others.
By offering its own assistant, TikTok may keep users from turning to outside AI tools, such as OpenAI's ChatGPT, when they have product questions.
Until now, TikTok Shop has been the main driver of the company's online shopping plans. TikTok Shop is the app's in-house marketplace.
The new tools go beyond that shopping hub. TikTok is now placing shopping features more directly across the wider app.
TikTok Shop launched in the U.S. in September 2023. Market research firm eMarketer estimates it generated about $15.8 billion in U.S. sales in 2025.
That figure represents roughly 18% of all U.S. social commerce, according to eMarketer.
The launch follows TikTok's Economic Impact Report, which the company released last week. The report says activity on the platform helped generate $81 billion in GDP for U.S. businesses.
The same report found that 54 million Americans said they had bought a product after watching a TikTok video.
