PDD Holdings

AI Revolutionizes E-Commerce: The Rise of Agentic Shopping

An Adweek feature profiles six GEO startups (including Adthena and Profound) that are influencing the development of AI-driven shopping. The article says businesses are preparing for an era of "agentic commerce," where AI agents purchase on consumers' behalf, but notes that this is not yet happening at scale. Today, LLM-powered AI answer engines — such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s AI Mode and Gemini — are guiding consumers toward purchases but have driven only a fractional share of e-commerce sales. Similarweb found that between August 2025 and January, AI answer engines sent 49.5 million visitors to the e-commerce sites of five major retailers (Amazon, Walmart, Target, Temu and eBay), with Amazon capturing 28% of that traffic and Walmart 27%. The piece outlines that multiple scenarios for future agentic commerce are emerging.

eBay Cuts 800 Jobs Amid Strategic Restructuring Efforts

eBay said it will eliminate roughly 800 roles, about 6% of its global workforce, as part of a reorganization to realign resources and reinvest across the business. The company had 12,300 employees as of Dec. 31, 2025. The announcement follows a recently disclosed settlement with a Massachusetts couple who sued eBay over a 2019–2021 harassment campaign by former employees; terms were not disclosed. eBay has been trimming headcount while increasing investment in artificial intelligence, implementing internal AI tools and partnering with OpenAI on an "agentic web browser." The company is also pursuing growth via acquisitions, announcing plans to buy Depop for about $1.2 billion in cash and reporting that gross merchandise volume from its focus categories grew more than 16% year over year in the fourth quarter.

Supreme Court Ruling Boosts E-Commerce Stocks Amid Tariff Clarity

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that former President Donald Trump lacked legal authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose sweeping tariffs, including removal of the 'de minimis' exemption. The decision eased uncertainty for e-commerce marketplaces and sent shares of Amazon, Wayfair, Etsy, Shopify, eBay and Pinduoduo higher. The tariffs had pressured online marketplaces by increasing costs, disrupting supply chains, and impacting small sellers; companies and trade groups said the ruling provides clarity and could allow recovery of tariff costs. The ruling also highlighted that some firms (e.g., Apple) have already paid significant tariff sums, and marketplace operators warned about lingering consumer demand and macroeconomic headwinds.