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The landscape of shopping is undergoing a fundamental shift as AI agents increasingly help consumers discover, compare, and decide what to buy. To power this evolution, commerce infrastructure needs to be open, secure, and interoperable. That’s why we are proud to announce PayPal’s support of Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), launched today. As part of our support, PayPal will soon be a payment option available within a new checkout feature on Google, powered by UCP.

This collaboration and the launch of UCP marks a milestone for the industry. Much like the introduction of other open standards, Google’s UCP is a breakthrough moment that will soon enable merchants to make their products available and purchasable in AI Mode in Google Search and the Gemini app.

“The next generation of commerce will be defined by how well we build open, trusted infrastructure that serves everyone,” said Michelle Gill, GM of Small Business and Financial Services, PayPal. “Supporting and collaborating with Google on UCP reflects our role in bringing a trusted payments experience layer that makes agentic commerce a reality for consumers.”

Expanding payment choice

For merchants, the challenge of agentic commerce has been the complexity of fragmented platforms. PayPal solves this by acting as a trusted infrastructure layer for agentic commerce. For more than 25 years, we have connected hundreds of millions of consumers and tens of millions of merchants through reliable payments and fraud protection, along with our buyer and seller protections.  As commerce becomes more agent-driven, those foundations matter more than ever.

“Protocols like UCP turn agentic commerce into something merchants can actually adopt at scale,” said Prakhar Mehrotra, SVP and Head of AI at PayPal. “Interoperability is what allows retailers to connect once and reach many environments, while maintaining trust, transparency, and control.”

The future is built together

Last year, agentic commerce made the leap from theoretical idea to practical reality for merchants and consumers alike. At PayPal, we’re committed to building the trusted infrastructure that makes this future possible with the ecosystem.

“For agentic commerce to scale, it’s critical for the industry to align on a common set of standards. We are proud to have PayPal endorse the Universal Commerce Protocol as the foundation for that future,” said Ashish Gupta, VP/GM, Merchant Shopping, Google.

Our work with Google on UCP is one step in that journey, reinforcing our belief that the next era of commerce should be open, trusted, and built together. Because the future of commerce isn’t about who controls the interface. It’s about who helps the ecosystem work.

For more information about PayPal’s agentic commerce offerings and approach, visit PayPal.ai.

BENTONVILLE, Ark., Jan. 11, 2026 — Today, Walmart Inc. and Google share plans to launch a new experience that pairs the intelligence of Google’s Gemini with Walmart and Sam’s Club’s unmatched assortment, value and convenience, to make shopping more intuitive, reliable and perfectly aligned with the rhythms of everyday life. The new experience — built by Walmart and accessible directly within Gemini using the Universal Commerce Protocol — addresses several key customer needs:
 

• Great items, at great prices: Gemini will automatically include Walmart and Sam’s Club in-store and online products when it’s relevant. For example, when a customer asks for advice on camping equipment for the spring season, it will return items from the retailer’s large inventory of products. And since people talk back-and-forth with Gemini, there are more opportunities to show relevant products and services throughout the conversation
• Personalization and familiarity: When customers discover items in Gemini, Walmart helps them move from inspiration to purchase in a seamless, trusted experience — all within the familiar Walmart and Sam’s environments they know and love. When customers link their accounts, Walmart will recommend complementary items based on their past online and in-store purchases, combine their order with other items they’ve put in their Walmart or Sam’s Club carts, and provide all the benefits of their Walmart+ and Sam’s Club memberships.
• Fast delivery: Customers and members can get in-store and club items delivered right where and when they want it, with hundreds of thousands of locally curated products delivered in under three hours and as fast as 30 minutes.

“The transition from traditional web or app search to agent-led commerce represents the next great evolution in retail. We aren’t just watching the shift, we are driving it,” said John Furner, President and CEO of Walmart U.S. and incoming President and CEO of Walmart Inc. “We want to help customers get what they need and want, when and where they want it. Partnering with Google to bring the Walmart experience directly into Gemini is another step toward creating seamless shopping experiences for customers and members that are more intuitive and personal than ever before.”

“AI can improve every step of the consumer journey, from discovery to delivery. Walmart is an innovator in retail and we are excited to partner with them on a new open standard to make agentic commerce a reality. Customers will soon be able to experience everything they love about Walmart directly in the Gemini app,” said Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet.

Authentic Brands Group, a global sports, media, entertainment and lifestyle platform, adopts Google’s Gemini and Google Cloud infrastructure to power Authentic Intelligence

NEW YORK, Jan. 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Today at NRF 2026: Retail’s Big Show, Google Cloud and Authentic Brands Group (Authentic), a global brand development and licensing platform, announced a strategic partnership leveraging Google’s Gemini and Google Cloud’s Vertex AI platform to supercharge collaboration and creativity across the organization.

As the owner of more than 50 global brands generating over $32 billion in retail sales across 150 countries, Authentic is uniquely positioned to leverage AI to be faster, stronger, and more profitable. To realize that opportunity, Authentic built a proprietary AI platform, Authentic Intelligence, harnessing Google Cloud’s Vertex AI platform as a core component of its technology stack.

“Authentic Intelligence empowers our teams to create and grow our business with the entrepreneurial spirit our company was built on: independence, hustle and excellence,” said Adam Kronengold, chief digital officer, Authentic. “Building our Authentic Intelligence toolbox with Google Cloud’s AI capabilities allows our teams to rapidly scale workflows, asset creation and reporting, while maintaining consistency across our brands and organizational processes.”

Currently 80% of Authentic employees across departments—from marketing and creative to finance and business development—use the platform on a weekly basis. In early testing, ad creative for Reebok, enhanced by Authentic Intelligence, delivered up to 60% higher return on ad spend (ROAS) compared to traditional product imagery.

Authentic Intelligence’s 15+ specialized agents power Authentic’s key business functions including:

• In business development, agents build comprehensive profiles of potential partners to accelerate lead generation and unlock new licensing opportunities.
• For brand management and creative, brand-specific agents help maintain authentic brand voice and visual identity across all channels, while integrations with Google Veo generate brand-specific videos from text prompts.
• In licensing and legal, Authentic Intelligence assists with contract review and analysis, ensuring accuracy and accelerating turnaround times.

“In an environment that moves fast, you can’t afford to wait weeks for creative ideas. Authentic is using AI to give its teams their time back,” said Jose Gomes, vice president, Retail & Consumer Goods, Google Cloud. “By using Google Cloud and Gemini, Authentic is working faster and smarter—proving that a spark of inspiration can quickly become a global campaign—all while ensuring every piece of content, from SHAQ to Reebok and Juicy Couture, stays true to the brand’s DNA.”

About Authentic Brands Group
Authentic Brands Group (Authentic) is a leading sports, media, entertainment and lifestyle platform. As the owner of some of the most iconic and beloved intellectual property in the world, Authentic acquires and invests in brands to create long-term value for all of its stakeholders.

A digital-first, asset-light platform, Authentic sits at the intersection of culture, commerce and technology. It brings brands to life and cultivates fandom through powerful storytelling, premium content and unforgettable live experiences. Together with nearly 2,000 best-in-class licensing partners across 150 countries and an expansive distribution network, Authentic’s brands drive more than $32 billion in annual systemwide retail sales worldwide.

Authentic’s diversified portfolio spans more than 50 brands and reaches nearly one billion social media followers. Its roster includes Reebok, Champion, Shaquille O’Neal, David Beckham, Kevin Hart, Sports Illustrated, Elvis Presley, Muhammad Ali, Marilyn Monroe, Aéropostale, Nautica, Eddie Bauer, Lucky Brand, Nine West, Brooks Brothers, Juicy Couture, Vince Camuto, Izod, Van Heusen, Dockers, Ted Baker, Hart Schaffner Marx, Vince, Barneys New York, Judith Leiber, Quiksilver, Spyder, Billabong, Volcom, Roxy, RVCA, DC Shoes, Prince, Sperry and Hunter.

For more information, visit authentic.com. Follow Authentic on LinkedIn, Instagram and WeChat.

About Google Cloud
Google Cloud is the new way to the cloud, providing AI, infrastructure, developer, data, security, and collaboration tools built for today and tomorrow. Google Cloud offers a powerful, fully integrated and optimized AI stack with its own planet-scale infrastructure, custom-built chips, generative AI models and development platform, as well as AI-powered applications, to help organizations transform. Customers in more than 200 countries and territories turn to Google Cloud as their trusted technology partner.

SOURCE Google Cloud