India Pilots AI Chatbot-Led E-Commerce With ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude In The Mix
India is entering a new phase of digital innovation with a bold experiment in AI-powered shopping. The country has officially launched a pilot project to enable users to shop and pay directly through AI chatbots, marking a major step toward conversational commerce. The initiative — titled “India pilots AI chatbot-led e-commerce with ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude in the mix” — positions the nation as a testing ground for next-generation payment and shopping technologies.
ChatGPT Leads India’s AI Commerce Rollout
On Thursday, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the organization behind the popular Unified Payments Interface (UPI), teamed up with OpenAI and fintech firm Razorpay to launch this AI-driven pilot.
According to Razorpay, the pilot is being rolled out nationwide and will expand to more users in the coming months. This integration allows Indian consumers to chat, browse products, and complete secure payments — all within AI chatbots like ChatGPT, with upcoming integrations planned for Google’s Gemini and Anthropic’s Claude.
How The AI Chatbot E-Commerce Pilot Works
The system runs on UPI Reserve Pay, a new NPCI protocol that lets users block specific funds for future purchases. It also uses UPI Circle, which simplifies authentication by allowing payments directly within the chatbot — no app-switching required.
Razorpay built the merchant integration layer, ensuring that businesses can securely transact through conversational interfaces. This design aims to make shopping as easy as messaging a friend.
BigBasket And Vi Join As Early Partners
To kick off the pilot, major brands like BigBasket (owned by Tata Group) and Vi (Vodafone Idea) have come on board. Through this partnership, users can buy groceries or recharge their mobile plans directly within ChatGPT.
On the banking side, Axis Bank and Airtel Payments Bank are providing the underlying financial infrastructure to process UPI transactions seamlessly within the chatbot ecosystem.
Why This Matters For India’s Digital Economy
This move underscores India’s position as a global testbed for AI commerce innovation. With more than 300 million UPI users and a growing appetite for AI tools, the integration of ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude into e-commerce could redefine how Indians discover and pay for products online.
The pilot also demonstrates how AI chatbots can enhance user experience, offering personalized recommendations, instant checkout, and conversational engagement — all while maintaining the strong data security standards that NPCI enforces.
What’s Next For AI Chatbot Commerce
If successful, this pilot could pave the way for broader AI-led payment systems and new retail experiences across sectors like travel, food delivery, and telecom. As OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic continue refining their chatbots, India’s UPI infrastructure offers the perfect foundation for large-scale deployment.
This pilot isn’t just a technological milestone — it’s a glimpse into the future of frictionless, AI-powered shopping.
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