ChatGPT rewrites search

Welcome back to the Maze. Search is being rewritten by ChatGPT, which is pulling consumer intent away from Google and into generative engines. At the same time, GenAI is becoming a shopping companion in the U.S.—most trusted for big decisions, least trusted for everyday ones.

Main Story
🌀 ChatGPT rewrites search
📈 GenAI shopping’s trust gap🧩

Insights🧠
🚀 AI = P&L rocket fuel
💡 Retail profits go “beyond trade”
🔍🤖 ChatGPT vs Google use cases

LET’S ENTER THE MAZE!
- Artur Stańczuk, MarketMaze Founder

ChatGPT isn’t just a curiosity—it’s fast becoming a mainstream search tool. Bain, citing Sensor Tower data, shows usage up 70% in just six months of 2025. Shopping queries are surging, some categories are pulling ahead, and users are clicking through more than ever. For brands and investors, this signals a new search era where visibility and links matter as much as mentions.

Between January and June 2025, global ChatGPT prompts grew from 17M to 28.6M, a 70% increase in just half a year. Growth accelerated sharply through March and April before stabilizing near 29M. This isn’t simply experimentation—it’s a structural shift in how people look for information, products, and advice. For businesses reliant on traditional search, the challenge is clear: adapt content for AI discovery or risk falling behind as user attention migrates.

Shopping’s share of ChatGPT prompts rose from 7.8% to 9.8% between January and June 2025, making 1 in 10 searches commerce-related. That 25% gain comes on top of the 70% surge in total usage, meaning absolute shopping queries more than doubled. This reflects consumers turning to AI not just for answers, but for purchase guidance. Brands in both B2B and B2C need to shift toward AIO—optimizing content for generative engines like ChatGPT and Perplexity.

Not all product categories are benefiting equally. Personal tech held the largest share at 13%, home improvement jumped from 8% to 11%, and automobiles rose from 6% to 8%. Cosmetics and clothing, once dominant, fell from 15% to 11% as other sectors gained ground. These shifts highlight how consumer curiosity and buying intent in AI search are dynamic. Early winners are lifestyle-driven, suggesting brands that adapt quickly will capture disproportionate traffic and conversions.

In the US, click-throughs from ChatGPT answers tripled in Q2 2025, rising from 95K in March to 300K by June. Average click rates jumped from 2.2% to 5.7% as OpenAI added more live links to responses. This shows ChatGPT isn’t just a recommendation tool—it’s functioning like a search engine, guiding users directly to websites and products. For publishers and e-commerce players, the implication is clear: being linked inside AI responses is now table stakes for growth.

Sources: 🔒 Available for MarketMaze+ subscribers

Successful investing is often less about making the right moves and more about avoiding the wrong ones. With our guide, 13 Retirement Investment Blunders to Avoid, you can learn ways to steer clear of common errors to help get the most from your $1M+ portfolio—and enjoy the retirement you deserve.

Get your free guide today.

GenAI is shaking up how Americans shop, but the real story is in the details. A new Burke Omnibus Survey of 1,200 U.S. consumers shows adoption is highest where decisions feel risky, but trust is still a major roadblock. GenAI is rapidly bridging the gap for younger shoppers and complex purchases, yet most people still prefer talking to a real human. Here’s how risk, age, and trust shape the real-world use of GenAI in the U.S. retail landscape.

Americans turn to GenAI most for high-stakes decisions—think travel, legal advice, or banking. In the past year, 27% of shoppers in both travel planning and legal services tapped GenAI for help, far above lower-stakes categories like apparel (13%) and groceries (12%). Use also runs high for banking (25%), real estate, electronics, and tools (all 23%). The data’s clear: when the stakes are high and choices feel complex, GenAI is increasingly the go-to shortcut to cut through confusion, simplify research, and give shoppers confidence before a big purchase.

Adoption is not equal across generations. Among U.S. shoppers under 40, GenAI shopping use in the past year reached 36% for Gen Z and 34% for Millennials, compared to just 15% for Boomers and Silent generations. That’s a 2.4x gap between digital natives and older cohorts. Even Gen X lags at 29%. Younger buyers are already normalizing GenAI as a decision tool, while older adults stick to traditional habits. The message: as younger cohorts gain spending power, expect GenAI adoption to accelerate across more categories and price points.

Despite the hype, trust barriers are stubbornly high. Nearly half of U.S. consumers—45%—say they’d still rather talk to a human than use GenAI, with privacy concerns (29%), lack of AI know-how (38%), and skepticism about unbiased recommendations (27%) rounding out the main obstacles. Gen Z stands out as most skeptical on bias (35%), while Boomers lead on privacy (38%) and a desire for human contact (51%). These trust gaps aren’t just noise—they shape who actually uses GenAI to shop, what they use it for, and whether GenAI will truly break through as the new normal in retail decision-making.

Sources: 🔒 Available for MarketMaze+ subscribers

Want to quickly scale your new Amazon product launches into listings earning over $100K annually—in less than two months? Stack Influence makes it easy by automating thousands of micro-influencer collaborations each month. Say goodbye to complicated outreach, negotiating influencer fees, and managing complex campaigns. With Stack Influence, influencers are paid only in your products, creating authentic user-generated content (UGC) that drives real engagement and boosts your organic Amazon rankings.

Leading brands like Magic Spoon, Unilever, and MaryRuth Organics already rely on Stack Influence to achieve impressive sales growth, enhance brand visibility, and build genuine connections with customers. Fully automated management means effortless campaigns, giving you complete control without lifting a finger. Boost your listings, increase external traffic, and own full rights to impactful influencer-generated images and videos.

Experience rapid, stress-free growth and proven results with micro-influencer marketing.

Get 10% OFF this month!

BCG shows GenAI can add +500–800 bps to EBIT for consumer brands. That comes from -20–30% labor cost cuts, -10–15% lower ad spend for same outcome, and +3–5% gross revenue lift. AI is less about chatbots, more about re-wiring the income statement.
👉 Don Brett (LinkedIn)

Bain data shows that in Western markets, “beyond trade” (retail media, marketplaces, services) grew from 10% of sales and profit in 2021 to 15% of sales and 25% of profit in 2024. Translation: side hustles are becoming the main hustle.
👉 Bartłomiej Bojko (LinkedIn)

NP Digital survey of 780 people: 82% use ChatGPT for research, 21% for learning. Google still rules news (25%) and shopping (18%). Search isn’t dying—it’s splitting. One is a homework buddy, the other a mall + newspaper.
👉 Neil Patel (LinkedIn)

SHARE THE MAZE
Your network thinks you’re as smart as the content you share. Share smarter stuff and help us grow. Win–win. Here’s what you get when friends join the Maze:

Here is your unique referral link to share with friends:

{{rp_refer_url}}

and link to the hub to check your progress.

That's it for today! Before you go we’d love to know what you thought of today's maze to help us improve!

See you next time in the maze!
MarketMaze team