Talk to my AI agent, the new rules of brand value
Based on a survey of 25,590 consumers across 16 countries, the report explores the emerging “delegation dial,” from collaboration and task execution to delegated decision-making and autonomous purchasing.
It finds that 85% of consumers are open to collaborating with an AI agent, 74% would delegate routine commerce tasks, 32% would delegate purchase decisions within defined boundaries and 9% are open to autonomous purchasing.
The research also examines how readiness varies by purchase type, with recurring services and routine replenishment showing greater openness to delegation than lifestyle and travel purchases.
Trust depends on factors including personalization, platform reputation, perceived neutrality, clear reasoning, data safeguards and the ability to override an agent’s actions.
The report identifies three shifts in brand value.
First, AI agents will expose gaps between brand promises and actual value by comparing products, prices, claims and fulfillment more continuously and precisely.
Second, value will pivot toward the “decision layer,” where agents discover, compare, recommend and influence purchases, creating new competition among AI platforms, retailers, brands, payment providers and fulfillment players.
Third, brands will need to win both human attention and algorithmic consideration: consumers increasingly expect brands to understand their intent, while agents require structured, verifiable information to evaluate and recommend them.
The report concludes with three rules for brands and retailers: understand consumers in the moment and build propositions worth choosing; compete for influence as the consumer journey becomes mediated; and rewire the business around the consumer promise by integrating consumer intelligence and using AI to close the gap between promise and delivery.
Access the full report.
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