By Simon King

AI is quickly becoming the primary interface between consumers and their favourite brands. This is particularly true in the e-commerce space, where the use of AI-powered chat services and browsers continues to rise.

Consumers are engaging with large language models (LLMs) to find specific products or locate the best deals, while receiving links to relevant retail websites.

Speaking exclusively to RetailBiz at the Adobe Summit 2026, Adobe Digital Insights director Vivek Pandya said that not all retailers are seeing the same benefit.

Pandya said new Adobe data shows that major portions of US retail websites are not entirely readable by machines, which limits their visibility across AI search results.

“As the internet continues to be determined by AI, there is increased urgency for retailers to revamp their digital properties and ensure their products remain top of mind with shoppers,” Pandya said.

Adobe’s insights are based on direct transactions online, covering over one trillion visits to US retail sites. In the first three months of 2026, traffic from AI sources to US retail sites grew 393% year-on-year (YoY). In March 2026, it was up 269% YoY.

“This continues the momentum that was observed during the most recent holiday season (November to December 2025) where AI traffic was up 693% YoY,” Pandya said.

In Adobe’s survey, 39% of consumers say they have used AI before for online shopping, with 85% of them saying it improved their experience. “These figures highlight the durable value that AI is delivering in the ecommerce space, shortening the time it takes for consumers to find what they need or locate relevant discounts.”

He added: “Notably, AI traffic continues to convert better (visits that result in purchases) than non-AI traffic, which covers channels such as paid search and email marketing. In March 2026, AI traffic converted 42% better (a new record high). This is a major reversal from a year ago, where in March 2025, AI traffic converted 38%.”

Rising consumer trust has played a factor, with Adobe’s survey showing that 66% of respondents believe AI tools provide accurate results. This is giving shoppers confidence and driving more transaction activity.

“The rise in AI conversion is reinforced by Adobe’s data on engagement and bounce rates,” Pandya said. “Data from March 2026 showed that once an individual lands on a US retail site (from an AI source), the engagement rate is 12% higher compared to non-AI traffic. These shoppers are essentially spending more time on the website (48% longer per Adobe’s data) and browsing more pages (13% more pages per visit).”

Overall, Adobe’s data shows that while US retailers have built a good foundation when it comes to AI visibility, there are glaring changes that need to be made.

“Consumer adoption of these AI tools is not slowing down, and businesses need to ensure their digital front doors are optimised for AI to remain relevant in today’s environment,” Pandya said.

Top tips for retailers

Pandya said that content is absolutely part of the visibility equation. “Some retailers have done a really great job of making sure their site is very readable, very straightforward for an agent to absorb all the content and really serve that back,” he said.

“But then you have others that are underperforming there, and they have a bit more of an opportunity to optimise their content more to drive better generative engine optimisation.”

Pandya continued: “Retailers need to provide a good user experience. It’s incredibly important that sites are able to provide really rich, structured content, so that the LLM agent is able to pick up all that information very quickly, validate it, and use it as a trusted source to customers.”

“Some retailers are moving to ensure that products that they’re selling are well described across their pages and sites,” he said. “If you think about categories with a bit more complexity associated them, like electronics and jewellery, many of these players are taking this opportunity.”

“Personalisation about five or six years ago, felt pretty daunting, however, because of AI and the level of data richness and these systems integrating, personalisation feels much more attainable for many brands.”

The post US retailers see surge in AI traffic, but many websites are not entirely readable by machines appeared first on retailbiz.

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