OpenAI announced that it had globally launched two new shopping-focused features for ChatGPT on 1 October 2026. The updates come after the company shifted away from its previously underperforming instant checkout approach.
- With the “Try On” button, users will be able to upload a selfie or full-body photo to see how clothes and accessories would look on them. A screenshot of a product can also be uploaded for a virtual try-on.
- With the “Favorites” feature, liked products can be saved to the “Library” section in the app. These products will be stored along with virtual try-on images.
The features use the ChatGPT Images 2.5 model, which OpenAI says offers more natural lighting and richer textures, follows editing instructions more reliably, and reduces image-generation latency.
ChatGPT will also be able to find items matching a style described by the user or identify purchasable products from photos of celebrities’ outfits. These functions enter Pinterest and Google’s territory in fashion inspiration and product discovery. Since Google launched its virtual try-on feature last year, it remains uncertain whether ChatGPT will be the first choice for this use case.
Why it matters
This step shows that rather than focusing on taking direct payments for purchases, ChatGPT is strengthening its role in product discovery and the decision-making process. For users, the value lies not only in finding an item, but in bringing together an experience where they can assess it using their own images and later revisit the ones they liked. Improvements to the image-generation model provide the technical foundation that determines how realistic the results of this experience will be and how closely they will follow the instructions provided. However, Pinterest and Google are already present in the areas of fashion inspiration, virtual try-ons, and identifying purchasable products; because of a similar feature Google launched last year, it remains unclear whether ChatGPT will be the service users turn to first.
Background
ChatGPT is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we have published 33 news stories mentioning it in the past 90 days; the latest is dated October 1, 2026.