Cyprus hosts pioneering AI shopping trials as Mastercard tests agentic tech

AI agents set to take bigger role in shopping and paymentsMore than one in 10 consumers could be regularly using AI agents to shop and make purchases online on their behalf by 2030, according to a new Mastercard report examining the future of shopping and payments. The report, titled ‘A Short History of the Future of Shopping and Payments‘, combines Mastercard research with forecasts from four international experts on the future of artificial intelligence and commerce. The experts are Magnus Lindkvist, Patrick Dixon, Katja Forbes and Theodora Lau, with the report examining how artificial intelligence could reshape shopping and payments by the end of the decade. Mastercard said AI agents are expected to take on an increasing number of routine purchases, including potentially negotiating prices on behalf of consumers. Smart devices such as watches and rings are also expected to provide consumers with personalised product information before and after purchases, while AI is likely to take on a more active role inside physical shops. The report pointed out that everyday and repetitive purchases such as groceries, medicines and subscription services are likely to be among the first transactions consumers delegate to AI agents. “By 2030, buying a product and the shopping experience will not necessarily be the same thing,” Lindkvist said. “AI agents will take care of the most everyday purchases, leaving the shopping experience to be more closely associated with discovery, inspiration and enjoyment,” he added. Mastercard stated that the shift towards AI-assisted shopping is already becoming visible among younger consumers. Its recent international research covered 26,000 parents and teenagers aged 13 to 18 across 13 countries and found that teenagers were already using artificial intelligence in purchasing decisions at roughly twice the rate of their parents. Some 62 per cent of teenagers surveyed said they believed AI would significantly change how their generation shops in the future. Trust in AI recommendations also appears to be developing among younger consumers, with 31 per cent saying they would trust a product recommendation from AI more than one from a friend. A further 23 per cent said they would trust an AI recommendation more than advice from their parents. The report explained that the growing role of AI agents would also create a new type of customer for retailers, with businesses increasingly needing to cater not only to people but also to software acting on their behalf. An AI agent could analyse large volumes of information within seconds, cross-check data, assess customer reviews and comments and then select and complete a purchase. For businesses, this means digital shopping experiences, product information and loyalty programmes will need to be accessible and understandable to both human customers and AI agents. Information such as product certifications, country of origin and sustainability characteristics will also need to be easy for AI systems to identify and verify. Mastercard said trust will be a decisive factor in the development of so-called agentic commerce, in which AI systems act on behalf of consumers. “Every major change in the history of commerce has essentially also been a change in the way trust is built,” Lindkvist stated. “From traditional markets to e-commerce, every development asked us to trust something new,” he added. The report mentioned that consumers would increasingly have to trust technology not only to recommend products but also to act on their behalf. Lau said businesses and financial institutions would need to establish that trust through clear frameworks covering identification, consent, authorisation and responsibility. She predicted that by 2030 at least three regulators in G20 countries would have issued formal guidelines covering the registration and supervision of AI agents. The report also forecasts that the intention behind a payment will become as important as the transaction itself, as the authorisation given by a consumer to an AI agent will need to be recognised and verified before a purchase is completed. Although the report looks towards 2030, Mastercard said agentic commerce was already moving from theory into practice. Earlier this year, Mastercard carried out what it described as the first agentic transactions in Cyprus in a regulated environment, in collaboration with Alpha Bank Cyprus, Eurobank Limited and the Bank of Cyprus. The transactions demonstrated how AI solutions could be incorporated into e-commerce while maintaining security, transparency and consumer control, according to Mastercard. They were carried out using Mastercard Agent Pay, allowing an AI agent to complete purchases on behalf of a consumer. The transactions were subject to the consumer’s explicit consent and were conducted through processes designed to ensure identification, verification and protection of personal data. The Cyprus trials provided an early example of the type of payment infrastructure Mastercard expects to become increasingly relevant as AI agents move beyond providing recommendations and begin taking actions on consumers’ behalf. The report suggested that the expansion of this technology will therefore depend not only on its ability to automate shopping but also on whether consumers, businesses, financial institutions and regulators can establish clear rules governing who authorises an AI agent, what it is permitted to do and who is responsible for its actions.