PayPal plugs into Google’s agentic checkout as AI-driven commerce moves to scale
The payments group will support Google’s new Universal Commerce Protocol, enabling purchases inside AI Mode in Search and the Gemini app, as industry players align around open standards for agent-led shopping.
PayPal will be available as a payment option within a new Google checkout experience powered by the Universal Commerce Protocol, marking a further step towards mainstream, AI-mediated commerce.
In a statement, PayPal said it supports Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol, or UCP, which was launched today and is designed to let merchants make products discoverable and purchasable directly within AI Mode in Google Search and the Gemini app. The protocol is intended to support end-to-end commerce flows, from discovery through payment and post-purchase support, without forcing users to leave AI-driven interfaces.
PayPal framed its involvement as an extension of its long-standing role in online payments. The company said it has connected hundreds of millions of consumers with tens of millions of merchants over more than 25 years, providing payments infrastructure alongside fraud prevention and buyer and seller protections.
“The next generation of commerce will be defined by how well we build open, trusted infrastructure that serves everyone,” said Michelle Gill, general manager of small business and financial services at PayPal. She positioned UCP as a way to ensure that new AI-driven shopping experiences are built on familiar, trusted foundations rather than closed or fragmented systems.
From PayPal’s perspective, standardisation is central to making agentic commerce practical. Prakhar Mehrotra, senior vice president and head of AI at the company, said protocols such as UCP make it possible for merchants to adopt agent-led commerce at scale, rather than through bespoke integrations that only large retailers can afford.
Google echoed that view, presenting UCP as a shared layer for the industry. Ashish Gupta, vice president and general manager of merchant shopping at Google, said agentic commerce will only scale if companies align on common standards, adding that PayPal’s endorsement helps position UCP as a foundation for that future.
Related reading
- What you need to know about ChatGPT Health as a secure hub for personal health information launches
- Google launches open standard to push agentic commerce into search and AI apps
The integration means shoppers using AI Mode in Google Search or the Gemini app will be able to complete eligible purchases using PayPal, alongside other supported payment methods, while merchants remain the seller of record. It also reinforces Google’s broader push to move AI from a discovery tool into a transactional interface.
PayPal said further details on its approach to agentic commerce and related offerings are available via its PayPal.ai site, as the company looks to ensure its payments infrastructure remains relevant in an environment increasingly shaped by autonomous and conversational systems.
The Recap
- PayPal will be a payment option in Google's new checkout.
- PayPal has connected hundreds of millions of consumers and merchants.
- PayPal will soon appear as a payment choice in Google's checkout.
