Shopify says AI search is driving more traffic and sales, not replacing Google
TL;DR
Shopify says AI search is not cannibalising store traffic the way it has for publishers. AI-driven visits and orders to Shopify stores tripled year over year in the second quarter. For merchants, AI search currently acts as an additional channel alongside Google rather than a replacement for it. Shopify frames the numbers as evidence that AI discovery is expanding demand.
Nauti's Take
For merchants the opportunity is concrete: clean, structured product data makes a store visible in AI answers and adds a channel. The limit is the evidence.
A tripling without absolute numbers can start from a very small base, and Shopify has an obvious interest in this message. Anyone shifting budget should verify AI referral traffic in their own analytics first.
Sources