Much has been written about consumer worries around artificial intelligence and its potential to do harm. 

But marketing agency Croud is out with new research purporting to show that consumers may be more ready for AI-powered commerce than brands realize, and that AI is reshaping every stage of the consumer journey. 

According to the research, based on a nationally representative survey of more than 2,000 U.S. consumers, 69% of Americans are open to AI purchasing on their behalf.  

Seventy-three percent of AI users research via LLMs before deciding on a specific brand or product, allowing AI to shape consideration before preferences have been formed. 

Thirty-nine percent of AI users validate AI recommendations across four or more sources before buying, with more than one-third turning to YouTube. According to Croud, that's a strong signal that reviews, creators, social platforms, and brand-owned content determine whether AI recommendations convert into purchases. 

"Ironically, AI is making the consumer journey more human, not less," says Val Davis, US CEO, Croud. "As consumers increasingly rely on AI to discover more options, they're placing significant value on human validation before making a purchase."    

The study also found that half of consumers are comfortable allowing AI to purchase across three or more categories. 

And low-risk, routine purchases such as groceries and household essentials dominated the categories in which AI-users were likely to trust AI-automated checkout.  

Fashion shoppers also stood out for spending more when using AI-assisted checkout—about 56% more than non-users.  

Croud worked with research firm ImpactSense to develop the study. The full report can be downloaded here.