◆ E-COMMERCE · Platform Updates
Meta is testing checkout inside its AI chats
The News
At Advertising Week New York on October 6, 2026, Meta said it is testing checkout with Shopify in Meta Business Agent on Messenger, the AI that answers a brand’s customers. Checkout tests in Meta AI with Adyen, PayPal, Shopify and Stripe will begin “this fall.” Meta is adding PayPal wallet to Muse, its AI agent, as PayPal announced in September.
Chandni Melwani
Founder & Editor
Oct 8, 2026 · 1 MIN READ
Know More
- — Muse’s existing checkout options: Link by Stripe and Shop Pay, according to Meta.
- — Not stated for the checkout tests: fees, eligible countries or a general-release date.
- — Amazon’s objections, per Adweek: Muse does not identify itself and appears to capture and store customer credentials, among others.
- — Other updates included: a wider Ads Creative Studio rollout, new Ads Manager assistant features and more generative AI video tools.
Meta launched Muse in September as a general-purpose assistant for tasks including shopping and payments, Adweek reported. Later that month, Muse users shopping on Amazon.com met a popup: “Continued access by an unauthorized AI agent violates Amazon’s Conditions of Use, to which our customers have agreed.” The checkout tests Meta announced on October 6 are built so people can buy “without leaving the conversation.”
In Business Agent, Meta is testing direct checkout with Shopify on Messenger “so people can buy a product right after learning about it from a brand’s agent.” Planned tests in Meta AI would let businesses “sell products as they’re surfaced in conversation.”
Amazon told Adweek it had asked Meta to remove Amazon from Muse, and that third-party shopping agents “should operate openly and respect service provider decisions about whether or not to participate.” Meta did not respond to Adweek’s request for comment. Meta’s October 6 post does not mention Amazon.
The Read
Meta says product discovery increasingly happens in Meta AI, Muse and Business Agent, “where people ask, compare, and decide what to buy.” It says it is “building partnerships with retailers” for checkout inside those conversations. Each checkout it described names a payment or commerce partner. On Meta’s own account, more partner checkouts in its chats look set to follow.
Room for Disagreement
Meta says the updates give shoppers “a faster path from discovery to purchase, including taking them to the right product on a website”. In Muse, for merchants outside Link’s network, The Paypers reports, Link can generate a single-use virtual card for an approved purchase.
Related
Frequently Asked Questions
Can shoppers check out inside Meta AI yet?
Not as of October 6, going by the detail of Meta’s post, which says Meta AI tests will begin “this fall.” The post’s key takeaways read more broadly. With direct checkout tests in Business Agent on Messenger, Meta AI and Muse, they say, people “can now make purchases without leaving the conversation.”
What is Meta Business Agent?
The AI agent a business runs in its customer chats. Meta’s June 3, 2026 announcement says it can answer questions specific to the business, make product recommendations from a catalog, book appointments, qualify leads and close sales, among other things. In that post Meta expanded it to businesses of all sizes globally and added Instagram alongside WhatsApp and Messenger.
How else do Amazon and Meta work together?
Amazon told PYMNTS in November 2023 that US customers could shop its Facebook and Instagram ads and check out with Amazon without leaving those apps, for select products sold by Amazon or by independent sellers in its store. Amazon says Meta has signed an agreement to deploy AWS Graviton processors at scale, and Adweek reports Meta signed a multibillion-dollar deal to use Amazon’s AI chips.
Sources
- Meta for Business, “Advertising Week New York 2026: New AI Capabilities to Guide Campaigns and Reach Customers” (October 6, 2026): the checkout test with Shopify in Business Agent on Messenger, the Meta AI tests with Adyen, PayPal, Shopify and Stripe, PayPal wallet in Muse, and the other Advertising Week updates
- Adweek, Trishla Ostwal, “Amazon Locks Out Meta’s Muse in Agentic Shopping Standoff” (September 21, 2026): Amazon’s block on Muse, its statement and objections, Muse’s launch, and the multibillion-dollar chip deal
- American Banker, “PayPal partners with Meta’s Muse AI assistant” (September 23, 2026): PayPal’s September announcement of its Muse partnership
- The Paypers, “PayPal partners with Meta to bring checkout to Muse AI agent” (September 24, 2026): Link’s single-use virtual card for merchants outside its network
- PYMNTS, “Meta Enables Amazon Shopping Within Facebook and Instagram” (November 9, 2023): Amazon’s statement on in-app shopping for select products advertised on Facebook and Instagram
- Amazon, “Meta expands Amazon partnership with AWS Graviton chips for AI”: Meta’s agreement to deploy AWS Graviton processors at scale
- Meta, Meta Business Agent announcement (June 3, 2026): what Business Agent does, its expansion to businesses of all sizes globally, and Instagram
Chandni Melwani
Chandni Melwani is the founder and editor of New in AI, covering AI agents, M&A, and enterprise adoption. She holds a Master's in Management of Artificial Intelligence from Queen's University and brings a practitioner's perspective from her work in Data and AI leadership.
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