AI is transforming ecommerce – fast. As bots begin making purchase decisions, the role of merchants is being redefined. At Shopware, we believe it’s time to take an active stance. That’s why we’ve co-founded the Agentic Commerce Alliance: a joint initiative designed to protect diversity and empower innovation in the era of autonomous commerce.
Why this matters
The way people shop is changing. With AI agents gaining ground in ecommerce, brands risk losing their identity in a market dominated by automation, algorithms, and price-based decisions. In this environment, meaningful differentiation, customer relationships, and merchant independence are at risk.
At the same time, big tech players like OpenAI, Amazon, and Google are positioning themselves to become fully integrated commerce hubs. From payment to delivery, they’re building the infrastructure for agent-to-agent transactions – with the potential to reduce merchants to mere data points in a centralized, AI-controlled system.
We believe there’s a better way.
The Agentic Commerce Alliance: Two key goals
Shopware’s newly launched Agentic Commerce Alliance is a call to action. Together with a growing network of forward-thinking companies, we aim to shape the future of AI-driven commerce in a way that’s open, fair, and empowering for merchants of all sizes. Here’s how:
1. Helping merchants thrive in the Bot Economy
We’re developing open and interoperable standards that allow merchants to take part in agent-based commerce without handing over control to centralized platforms. That means creating new frameworks for how AI agents evaluate value – beyond just pricing. Elements like brand trust, service quality, expert advice, and community fit will matter again.
2. Turning AI into a force for differentiation
Rather than flattening the market, AI can become a powerful tool for brand storytelling, personalization, and immersive customer experiences. Through agentic commerce, merchants can deliver 3D product journeys, hyper-personalized content, seamless automation, and expert-level support – all while preserving their unique identity.
Backed by leaders across the industry
This initiative is already gaining traction. In addition to Shopware, the Alliance includes 15 respected companies across ecommerce, tech, and digital experience – including Strix, Pimcore, Basecom, Valantic, Human Element, ChannelEngine, Nosto, CapTech, Watsco Inc, and Spotler.
With more than 55,000 merchants worldwide powered by Shopware and a proven track record of AI innovation – including the launch of an AI-powered copilot in early 2022 – we’re uniquely positioned to lead this next chapter in digital commerce. Our CEO Stefan Hamann actively contributes thought leadership on Agentic Commerce, and was recently named one of the top 10 experts on AI in commerce, further validating the importance of this initiative and the leadership role of the Alliance.
A long-term vision for a more open future
Agentic Commerce is more than a technological shift – it’s a values-driven movement. It’s about giving merchants a voice in how AI shapes the future of commerce. And it’s just getting started.
Ready to join?
Be part of the movement. Help us shape a future where AI and individuality go hand in hand.
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