OpenAI is stepping further into the e-commerce landscape by introducing a new feature to ChatGPT that allows users to virtually try on clothing and accessories before making a purchase. The update marks a significant expansion of the conversational AI platform’s shopping capabilities, bridging the gap between digital text-based inquiries and visual retail experiences.
Under the new functionality, users can either take a fresh selfie or upload an existing photo of themselves directly into the chat interface. ChatGPT then uses this image to generate personalized visual representations, showing how various apparel items and accessories would look on the individual user. When shoppers browse clothing and accessory product listings within the platform, a dedicated "try-on" button appears, prompting the generation process and streamlining the path from discovery to evaluation.
This latest rollout underscores OpenAI’s broader strategy to court both consumers and major retailers onto its platform, transforming ChatGPT from a general-purpose conversational assistant into a transactional hub for digital commerce. As the artificial intelligence sector races to capture market share in retail, OpenAI’s latest feature positions the company to compete more directly with established search and shopping giants that have spent years developing similar visualization tools.
The introduction of the try-on tool follows a series of recent integrations and developments aimed at embedding retail infrastructure directly into AI platforms. Over the past year, prominent retail brands and marketplaces have increasingly experimented with conversational search and agentic storefronts. For instance, David’s Bridal established a presence on Shopify’s Agentic Storefronts for ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot, enabling shoppers to sift through the retailer’s extensive assortment by silhouette across both AI environments. Shortly after that milestone, online marketplace Etsy debuted its dedicated app on ChatGPT, expanding its reach into conversational search.
These retail integrations build upon foundation work laid by OpenAI last year, when the company introduced a comprehensive shopping research feature designed to recommend, evaluate, and compare products based on complex natural language search queries. By layering visual try-on technology on top of its existing recommendation engine, OpenAI is addressing one of the fundamental limitations of online apparel shopping: the uncertainty of how garments fit and look on diverse body types.
In adding this visual capability, OpenAI is actively catching up to Google’s robust suite of product visualization features. Google has steadily built out its generative artificial intelligence virtual try-on ecosystem over recent years. In 2023, Google debuted its virtual try-on tool, which initially allowed consumers to virtually try on women’s tops across various brands and styles. The following year, Google extended the visualization feature to encompass dresses, partnering with high-profile apparel lines. Last year, the technology expanded further into footwear, allowing shoppers to visualize shoes through advanced AI rendering.
The push toward virtual try-on technology across major tech platforms is driven by compelling data regarding consumer behavior and sales performance. Long before OpenAI and Google bolstered their respective AI platforms with advanced product visualization tools, independent retail research suggested that brands heavily sought out these immersive technologies to drive conversion rates and reduce product returns.
Brands that implemented virtual try-on technology saw their sales conversion rates more than double, according to a comprehensive 2024 survey conducted by Perfect Corp. Furthermore, consumer sentiment heavily favors these digital innovations. More than a third, or 38.4%, of respondents surveyed indicated that virtual fitting rooms and try-on experiences represent the ideal way to recreate or replicate physical, in-store shopping experiences within the online retail environment.
As consumer expectations shift toward hyper-personalized and visually interactive digital touchpoints, the integration of generative AI into retail is expected to accelerate. By allowing users to see apparel and accessories on their own likeness directly inside a conversational AI interface, OpenAI is offering retailers a powerful new medium to engage shoppers, reduce purchase hesitation, and capture valuable demand in an increasingly competitive digital marketplace.