Retail chatbots left behind: 2 in 3 consumers turn to ChatGPT, Claude
Retailers have deployed AI chatbots widely, but Gartner finds consumer usage hasn't budged since 2022 while third-party gen AI usage doubled. Nearly 74% of B2B customers also use these tools to accomplish tasks, bypassing brand channels.
Key Takeaways
- Retailers have deployed AI chatbots widely, but Gartner finds consumer usage hasn't budged since 2022 while third-party gen AI usage doubled.
- Nearly 74% of B2B customers also use these tools to accomplish tasks, bypassing brand channels.
Mentioned
Key Intelligence
Key Facts
- 1Third-party generative AI tool usage for customer service doubled in the year ending July 2026, while brand chatbot usage has not statistically increased since 2022.
- 2Two-thirds of consumers now use generative AI in their personal life, work, or both, but most turn to third-party tools like ChatGPT and Claude rather than brand-provided chatbots.
- 3Over 58% of consumers have used generative AI to complete a task, and nearly 74% of B2B customers have used it to accomplish a task, underscoring demand for action-oriented AI.
- 4Gartner analyst Keller warns that merely adding AI to an under-engaged chatbot won't boost adoption; brands must pursue intentional strategies to drive usage.
- 5Brands are failing in two key areas: enabling AI to take concrete actions on behalf of customers, and improving the presentation and user experience of their chatbots.
Who's Affected
Analysis
As shoppers increasingly rely on AI for product recommendations and support, retailers face a stark reality: their own chatbots are being ignored. With two-thirds of consumers now using generative AI, the path to purchase and post-sale service is shifting to platforms like ChatGPT, weakening brand-controlled touchpoints and data collection.
A new Gartner study has revealed a stark disconnect in how consumers are using AI for customer service. While the use of third-party generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Copilot has doubled in the past year, engagement with brand-deployed chatbots has remained statistically flat since 2022. This gap has significant implications for businesses that have poured billions into custom AI chatbots, only to see customers bypass them in favor of tools they already trust from their personal lives. According to Gartner analyst Keller, two-thirds of consumers now use generative AI in some form, but the vast majority of that usage is through third-party platforms, not brand-owned assistants. The data points to a fundamental mismatch between corporate AI investment and actual consumer behavior, leading to disappointing return on investment for many customer service initiatives.
While the use of third-party generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Copilot has doubled in the past year, engagement with brand-deployed chatbots has remained statistically flat since 2022.
Keller emphasizes that simply adding AI to an existing, underutilized chatbot is unlikely to drive engagement. 'If customers are not already engaging with your chatbot, simply putting AI in that chatbot is probably not going to drive more engagement,' he said. 'So you really need to drive intentional adoption strategies.' The research highlights two critical areas where brands are falling short: taking action and presentation. Over 58% of consumers have used generative AI to complete a task, and nearly three-quarters of B2B customers have used it to accomplish a task, indicating that users want AI that not only answers questions but executes outcomes — such as processing a return, changing an order, or troubleshooting a technical issue. Brand chatbots, often limited to scripted responses and narrow knowledge bases, struggle to match the fluid, multi-step reasoning capabilities of foundation models.
The trust factor cannot be overstated. Consumers increasingly rely on AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude for everything from travel planning to medical queries, building a comfort level that brand-specific bots cannot replicate. 'They use these tools in every aspect of their life, and they increasingly trust those tools and trust the responses that they get,' Keller noted. When a customer service issue arises, the instinct is to open a familiar interface rather than search for a website's chatbot widget. This behavioral shift is poised to reshape customer service architecture. Brands may find themselves no longer in control of the initial support interaction, as third-party AI becomes the new front door.
What to Watch
For industries like retail, this means a loss of direct customer data and upselling opportunities. In B2B contexts, the erosion is even more pronounced: 74% of professionals have used gen AI for work tasks, often circumventing vendor support portals. The implications extend to SaaS companies that build customer service solutions; their clients may question the value of investing in standalone chatbots when consumers are already solving problems on external platforms. On the flip side, there is an opportunity for brands to integrate more deeply with these third-party ecosystems, perhaps via plugins or APIs, to maintain a presence where the customers actually are.
Looking forward, the report suggests that the brands most likely to succeed will be those that adopt intentional adoption strategies — meeting customers in the channels they already use and enhancing those interactions with AI that can take real action. As AI models continue to advance, the gap between generic assistant capabilities and brand-specific bots is likely to widen, forcing a strategic rethink. The winners may not be those who build the best chatbot, but those who best orchestrate AI across the entire customer journey, leveraging third-party tools while retaining enough control to drive business outcomes. The next iteration of customer service AI may well be an ecosystem of interoperable agents, not a walled garden of branded bots.
Cite This Page
"Retail chatbots left behind: 2 in 3 consumers turn to ChatGPT, Claude." Retail Intelligence Brief, July 13, 2026. https://getretailbrief.com/story/retail-third-party-ai-beats-brand-chatbots
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