Conversational AI takes over the search bar

Major retailers and publishers are adding generative AI tools to their online experiences, enabling stronger discovery and engagement.

Why it matters: Conversational search better reveals customer intent than traditional menu navigation and keyword search, providing companies with richer insights to improve their products.

State of play: Digital companies began experimenting with chatbots last year to retain audiences as AI search threatened traffic. Now, more companies are integrating the tech into their existing sites and experiences.

SeatGeek recently launched Ask SeatGeek, which lets fans search for tickets using natural language. YouTube created Ask YouTube, allowing viewers to ask questions about videos without leaving the platform.

Reddit folded Reddit Answers into its main search bar as adoption of the feature surged from 1 million weekly users to 15 million over the course of 2025.

Walmart's Sparky AI assistant now enables visual search. Amazon's Alexa for Shopping, previously called Rufus, now allows customers to discover and purchase products from other online stores.

Between the lines: A cottage industry of AI startups is emerging to build and license specialized conversational-search engines to brands so they don't have to build the tools themselves.

Daydream, an AI fashion startup, enables dozens of retailers to use its natural-language search and visual discovery tech on their own websites. Whim does something similar for hotels, travel and hospitality companies.

Taboola, Miso and Arc XP license their tech to news and information publishers.

Adobe's Brand Concierge helps brands turn their websites into conversational experiences.

By the numbers: User adoption of AI search and chatbots has exploded, and companies leaning into generative AI for discovery report much stronger customer engagement and conversion rates.

Alexa for Shopping drove U.S. customers to spend over 40% more per order on average, the company said in July.

Conversion rates for customers using Walmart's Sparky for visual shopping jump by 57% versus text-based shopping, Walmart U.S. president and CEO David Guggina said last month.

Taboola said monthly active users of DeeperDive, its AI search product for publishing partners, grew from nearly 7 million in April to more than 11 million by late September.

Online readers of USA Today, one of the largest newspapers in the country, asked more than 50 million questions using DeeperDive between last September and July, per USA Today Co. CEO Mike Reed, with average daily activity now exceeding 390,000 interactions.

How it works: Traditional search remains faster for straightforward requests while conversational AI can handle more complicated ones, says SeatGeek engineer Shylah Andrews.

Fans can ask for the cheapest Dallas Cowboys tickets across an entire season or find seats near specific amenities, she adds.

SeatGeek is using insights from Ask SeatGeek to improve its traditional search experience, including making venues easier to find after discovering that more users were searching for them than expected.

Yes, but: Companies are also preparing for a future in which consumers begin and sometimes end their journeys on someone else's AI interface.

Some firms, like Instacart and Target, are making their inventory available for discovery and purchase through platforms like ChatGPT.

Others, such as SeatGeek, Tubi, DoorDash and Zillow, use ChatGPT as a discovery channel and then direct users to their own platforms to complete transactions, watch videos or do other follow-up tasks.

Spotify splits the difference, allowing users to connect their accounts to ChatGPT for personalized recommendations and playlists, while also making audio previews and some full podcast episodes available for listening on the AI platform.

The intrigue: Reddit is taking a more cautious approach. COO Jen Wong says Reddit hasn't yet determined what a mutually beneficial integration would look like given that users' participation is central to the platform's value.

What to watch: Not every experience can be reduced to a conversation.

"When people really are spending a lot of money on an experience and want to make sure they know 100% what they're getting, they're probably going to end up at some point on our site," SeatGeek's Andrews says.

Ask YouTube hasn't reduced video consumption so far, CEO Neal Mohan told Axios last month, adding that the feature is designed to help viewers engage more deeply with videos rather than replace watching them.