Shopping Decisions Shift from 'Reviews' to 'Generative AI': AI Trust Surpasses User Reviews, Nearly 60% Would Entrust Final Purchase Decisions
Key facts
- Shopping Decisions Shift from 'Reviews' to 'Generative AI': AI Trust Surpasses User Reviews, Nearly 60% Would Entrust Final Purchase Decisions
- A survey by Hakuhodo Shopping Laboratory reveals that generative AI has surpassed word-of-mouth and reviews as a trusted shopping information source, with nearly 60% of respondents willing to entrust final purchase decisions to AI. 'AI Shoppers' now account for one in four people, transforming the shopping experience.
- Source: PR Times
- Date: June 2, 2026
Direct answer
A survey by Hakuhodo Shopping Laboratory reveals that generative AI has surpassed word-of-mouth and reviews as a trusted shopping information source, with nearly 60% of respondents willing to entrust final purchase decisions to AI. 'AI Shoppers' now account for one in four people, transforming the shopping experience.
- Citation
- Shopping Decisions Shift from 'Reviews' to 'Generative AI': AI Trust Surpasses User Reviews, Nearly 60% Would Entrust Final Purchase Decisions (June 2, 2026), PR Times
- Source
- PR Times
- Date
- June 2, 2026
A survey by Hakuhodo Shopping Laboratory reveals that generative AI has surpassed word-of-mouth and reviews as a trusted shopping information source, with nearly 60% of respondents willing to entrust final purchase decisions to AI. 'AI Shoppers' now account for one in four people, transforming the shopping experience.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: June 2, 2026 at 10:00
- 🔍 Collected: June 2, 2026 at 10:26 (26 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: June 7, 2026 at 00:22 (109h 55m after Collected)
Hakuhodo Shopping Laboratory, the think tank of Hakuhodo Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and Representative Director: Kenji Nakura; hereinafter 'Hakuhodo'), conducted a survey on the actual usage of generative AI and its impact on purchasing behavior, targeting 20,000 men and women aged 20-69 nationwide.
This survey revealed that generative AI has surpassed UGC such as word-of-mouth and reviews, gaining trust from consumers as a shopping information source. Furthermore, nearly 60% of respondents answered that they would like generative AI to be involved in the final purchase decision of 'whether to buy or not,' indicating that generative AI is beginning to engage not only in information gathering but also in purchase decision-making.
Approximately one in two people who are aware of generative AI use it in their private/daily lives.
People who use generative AI for shopping (hereinafter 'AI Shoppers' (Note 1)) have expanded to about one in four people, utilizing it for comparison, information organization, and problem-solving consultations.
'AI Shoppers' experience reduced shopping time while increasing satisfaction, indicating that generative AI is beginning to change the shopping experience.
Generative AI is trusted more as a shopping information source than UGC (Note 2) such as word-of-mouth and reviews.
AI Shoppers also show a strong intention to entrust shopping to generative AI, resulting in increased attention on 'to what extent shopping will be entrusted to generative AI/AI agents in the future.'
Note 1: AI Shopper: A person who uses generative AI for shopping (including service usage).
Note 2: UGC: Abbreviation for User Generated Content. Content posted by consumers or individuals, such as reviews, SNS posts, and word-of-mouth.
1. Generative AI Usage Rate: One in two people aware of generative AI use it in 'private/daily life'
■ 91.2% of all survey respondents are aware of generative AI.
■ Among those aware, the usage rate of generative AI in private/daily life was 49.4%, approximately one in two people.
■ By age group, the usage rate was notably high at 71.3% for those in their 20s, and 57.2% for those in their 30s, exceeding half.
2. Expansion of 'AI Shoppers': One in four people use generative AI for shopping, 40% of users utilize it at least once a week
■ 24.6% of all respondents use generative AI for shopping (including service usage), meaning about one in four people use it for shopping.
■ Looking at the breakdown of users, 41.7% use it at least once a week, the highest proportion, indicating continued use in the shopping domain.
3. How Generative AI is Used for Shopping: Top uses are comparison and problem-solving; negotiation and peripheral support are minority
■ The top uses of generative AI for shopping are centered around product understanding, comparison, and problem-solving, such as 'explaining technical terms and specifications in an easy-to-understand way (66.6%),' 'comparing the performance and functions of multiple products (64.7%),' and 'finding solutions to life's problems (62.1%).'
■ On the other hand, uses like 'finding nearby stores with stock or efficient shopping routes (49.5%),' 'notifying when a product in use is about to run out (42.3%),' and 'helping with negotiations with people, such as persuading family or haggling with store staff (42.3%)' were relatively low.
4. Impact on Shopping Experience: Using generative AI reduces shopping time but increases satisfaction
■ Regarding the impact of using generative AI, 28.9% of people said their shopping time 'decreased,' exceeding the 19.2% who said it 'increased.'
■ 34.9% of people said their satisfaction with shopping 'increased,' exceeding the 11.1% who said it 'decreased,' indicating a change where satisfaction improves while time is reduced.
5. Trust in Shopping Information Sources: Trust in generative AI responses is 51.7%, surpassing general UGC
■ The top trusted information sources were 'information obtained through personal research or experience (71.0%),' 'official company websites/apps (58.7%),' and 'price comparison sites (58.1%).'
■ 'Generative AI responses (51.7%)' surpassed 'EC site reviews (48.6%),' 'reviews on social media/video sites by ordinary people (41.5%),' and 'information from personal blogs/note (38.0%),' gaining higher trust than existing UGC.
6. Scope of Entrustment to Generative AI: Over 60% would entrust final purchase decisions to AI
■ Regarding the scope of shopping processes they would entrust to generative AI, for 'gathering information on desired products (89.4%),' 'getting an idea of what product to buy (84.9%),' and 'narrowing down multiple purchase candidates to one (81.8%),' the total of responses from 'want to entrust almost entirely' to 'want to entrust somewhat' exceeded 80%.
■ For 'making the final product decision,' 60.0% answered from 'want to entrust almost entirely' to 'want to entrust somewhat,' and for 'deciding not to purchase,' it was 67.7%.
・Generative AI is positioned by consumers as 'a presence that supports product selection and judgment'
According to this survey, one in four people are already 'AI Shoppers' who use generative AI for shopping.
The current use of generative AI by AI Shoppers is centered on comparing products and consulting on life problems. On the other hand, it appears that practical and interpersonal support around shopping, such as inventory checks, shopping route optimization, and negotiation support with store staff, has not yet become widespread. At this point, it is inferred that generative AI is positioned by consumers primarily as 'a presence that supports product selection and judgment' rather than 'a presence that broadly supports the entire purchasing behavior.'
・Generative AI support alleviates the burden of 'unable-to-choose shopping'
It is also important that AI Shoppers report increased satisfaction with shopping despite spending less time on it. In 2018, the Hakuhodo Shopping Laboratory proposed the 'Tragedy of Unable-to-Choose Shopping' (Note 3), where consumers fall into a state of being 'unable to choose' due to the high burden of comparison and consideration caused by too much information and too many options. The results of this survey suggest that generative AI, by supporting human judgment in information gathering, comparison, and narrowing down purchase candidates, may help alleviate this burden. In the future, while reducing the negative time spent on shopping, consumers will be able to make more satisfying choices, and the potential to enjoy shopping itself more positively will expand.
・Establishment as a shopping partner: trusting generative AI and entrusting decisions
Furthermore, it is noteworthy that about half of AI Shoppers trust the information obtained from generative AI. This level is second only to store sales staff and exceeds existing information sources such as EC site reviews, indicating that generative AI is already widely accepted and beginning to permeate as a shopping information source.
Having gained high trust as an information source, it is clear that over 80% of AI Shoppers want to entrust generative AI with product information gathering, and over 60% with the final purchase decision. In the future, generative AI is expected to become established not just as a tool for specific processes like search and comparison, but as a shopping partner.
FAQ
Who were the survey respondents?
20,000 men and women aged 20-69 nationwide.
What is the usage rate of generative AI for shopping?
24.6% of all respondents (about 1 in 4 people) use generative AI for shopping.
Which information source does generative AI surpass in trust?
It surpasses EC site reviews and social media reviews by ordinary people.