PayPal said it plans to bring the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP) to ChatGPT, a move aimed at expanding how payments and commerce work inside the AI platform. The update will let millions of ChatGPT users make quick purchases with PayPal, and the company will also manage payment processing for merchants through OpenAI Instant Checkout. The move aims to link PayPal’s extensive merchant network with OpenAI, creating an opportunity for tens of millions of small businesses and global brands to engage directly with consumers through ChatGPT.
“Hundreds of millions of people turn to ChatGPT each week for help with everyday tasks, including finding products they love, and over 400 million use PayPal to shop,” said Alex Chriss, President and CEO of PayPal. “By partnering with OpenAI and adopting the Agentic Commerce Protocol, PayPal will power payments and commerce experiences that help people go from chat to checkout in just a few taps for our joint customer bases.”
This collaboration brings PayPal’s full suite of wallet capabilities to Instant Checkout, giving users access to multiple payment methods such as banks, balances, and cards. It also maintains PayPal’s buyer and seller protections, along with post-purchase benefits like tracking and dispute resolution, features that have long been integral to the PayPal checkout experience. The company will also back OpenAI Instant Checkout through its delegated payments API, taking care of card payment processing itself.
Starting in 2026, ACP will extend to merchants, linking product catalogs from small businesses and top retail brands in areas such as apparel, fashion, beauty, home improvement, and electronics to ChatGPT’s shopping feature. This will operate through PayPal’s ACP server, a secure and scalable system that links directly to its global network of merchants without requiring separate integrations. Behind the scenes, PayPal will oversee routing, payment verification, and transaction flow, making it easier for users to find and purchase millions of products through ChatGPT.
Beyond commerce, PayPal is widening its use of AI tools with OpenAI. The company is rolling out ChatGPT Enterprise to more than 24,000 employees, bringing Codex to its engineers, and making broader use of OpenAI’s APIs. The goal is to speed up development, help teams work smarter, and improve how customers experience PayPal’s products and services worldwide.
