Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol Signals The End Of Search-Based Shopping

Google is building the infrastructure layer for AI-driven shopping, and major retailers including Walmart, Target, and Shopify are backing it. That’s because Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP) isn’t just another integration point. It’s not another API to connect. Google’s announcement of UCP is the beginning of new infrastructure.

Agentic commerce is a fundamental shift in e-commerce and Google is building the rails for AI-native commerce, positioning itself as the protocol layer between consumers, retailers, and payment systems. Meanwhile Amazon is conspicuously building walls and other AI giants are making their own attempts at agentic commerce features.

This is the end of search-based shopping as we know it. The infrastructure wars for agentic commerce are just beginning.

The Protocol Layer Play

UCP standardizes the entire transaction stack—discovery,…