As AI agents begin shopping on people's behalf, brands are rethinking how they market to buyers driven by logic and data. In a New York Times piece by Brent Crane, Managing Director Jeff Blackman shared Barbarian's perspective on a shift that's moving fast: Adobe reports AI traffic to U.S. retail sites rose 393% in 2026, and Morgan Stanley projects agents could influence up to 20% of U.S. ecommerce, or $385 billion, by 2030.
"More and more, you’ll just need to click “buy” in the AI chat interface and you won’t need to visit a brand’s website. The risk of not being prepared could mean you won't show up," Jeff told The Times. “As agents take on the functional side of shopping, brand sites will play a more emotional role. You have to create a reason people want to visit your brand.”
Our 2026 Commerce Study found 58% of shoppers still visit a brand's site before buying, so the brands that win will give people a differentiated reason to visit. Read the full article in The New York Times → Link here