When AI Does The Deciding, Who Gets The Loyalty?

Raj De Datta is CEO of Bloomreach, a platform that personalizes the e-commerce experience, and the author of “The Digital Seeker.”

​As AI increasingly becomes the intermediary between consumers and brands, more and more consumers are crediting AI for their experiences. Consumers are, therefore, becoming more loyal to AI systems, not brands.

Business leaders don’t need to be told that this is a pretty big deal.

But it shouldn’t come as a surprise, either. Consider what we’re seeing. ChatGPT crossed one billion monthly active users in May 2026, and Capital One reports 60% of consumers are using AI to shop, with AI-driven traffic to retail sites up 393% year over year.

It’s not just e-commerce: In travel, a recent Qlik survey found 58% of Americans are now using AI tools to plan summer vacations, compared to 55% using traditional travel sites, marking the first time AI has overtaken the old way.

But adoption is only part of the story. We’re now seeing the implications of that adoption, too. According to a survey of over 4,000 consumers across the U.S. and U.K. conducted by my company, 43% of consumers say they feel more loyal to the AI tool that found them the right product than to the actual brand that made it. That data should give every brand a reason to pause.

Loyalty is going to AI, not the brand behind the purchase. And yes, this might look like an existential threat to brands everywhere. But it doesn’t have to be.

This has actually played out before, whether its department stores a century ago or, more recently, with Amazon. You can even consider it from a technology lens, with the onset of e-commerce or the evolution of mobile. The lesson we’ve learned again and again is that brands need to evolve to survive. The game has changed, and there are two distinct problems brands now need to solve.

Brands need to ensure that AI systems represent them accurately and, crucially, do everything they can to stand out once customers show up.