PayPal has announced its plans to adopt the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP) to broaden payments and commerce in ChatGPT, allowing users to check out instantly using its services.
As part of its collaboration with OpenAI, PayPal is set to support payment processing for merchants utilising OpenAI Instant Checkout and also connect its global merchant network to the company, developing a platform for small businesses and brands to sell within ChatGPT.
Bringing more options to ChatGPT
The partnership facilitates the capabilities of PayPal’s wallet in Instant Checkout, including multiple funding options such as bank, balance, and cards, as well as the company’s buyer and seller safeguards, and post-purchase services like tracking and dispute resolution.
Additionally, the move enables PayPal to assist OpenAI Instant Checkout through the delegated payments API, handling payment processing for card payments. For merchants leveraging PayPal, ACP is set to offer in 2026 the product catalogues of small businesses and retail brands across apparel, fashion, beauty, home improvement, and electronics to ChatGPT commerce through the company’s ACP server. The server provides a scalable and compliant access layer to a global network of merchants that won’t be required to implement individual merchant integrations. PayPal is set to handle merchant routing, payment validation, and orchestration in the background. With this integration, OpenAI and PayPal are set to make a wide range of products discoverable and purchasable via ChatGPT.
Furthermore, PayPal plans to scale its AI strategy with OpenAI’s capabilities beyond commerce, with the former aiming to expand access to ChatGPT Enterprise for its 24,000 employees, providing engineers with Codex, and increasing the direct use of OpenAI’s APIs. The strategic agreement enables PayPal to accelerate product development, scale employee impact, and further optimise customer experiences.
At the time of writing, existing and prospective PayPal merchants were able to sign up on the company’s website. According to PayPal’s officials, as more people turn to ChatGPT for everyday tasks, including finding products, working with OpenAI and adopting the APC, will allow the company to enable payments and commerce experiences that help individuals move from chat to checkout efficiently for their joint customer base.
