Reddit is testing a new AI search feature for shopping

Reddit announced Thursday that it is testing a new AI search tool that takes recommendations from the community and matches them with products from some of the company’s retail and advertising partners.

A small group of users in the US will see search results that include interactive product carousels with prices, images and direct links to where they can purchase.

The announcement reflects Reddit’s broader push to combine its community-driven platform with e-commerce capabilities. The move comes as Reddit launched it first shoppable advertising product last year, called Dynamic Product Ads (DPA), which show personalized product recommendations to users based on their interests.

When users participating in the test search for something like “the best noise canceling headphones” or “electronic gift ideas for a student,” they will see a carousel of related products at the bottom of the results.

This carousel contains products mentioned directly by users in conversations on related posts and comments. When users tap on the product, they can view more details and then be taken to the retailer to purchase the item.

“This feature pulls the top recommended products directly from discussions, giving Redditors instant information about each product,” the company wrote in a blog post. “This test is designed to make navigating Reddit easier while keeping community perspectives at the center of the experience. We will continue to learn from how people use this new feature and refine the experience over time.”

While platforms like TikTok and Instagram have long had integrated shopping features, Reddit now wants to follow suit. Of course, Reddit isn’t the only tech platform that has recently started exploring AI-driven shopping, as OpenAI’s ChatGPT rolled out an “Instant Checkout” feature last September that allows users to make Etsy and Shopify purchases during conversations.

Thursday’s announcement comes after Reddit CEO Steve Huffman said during the company’s earnings call last week that the platform’s AI search engine could be the next big opportunity for his company, not just in terms of product, but also as a revenue generator.

Huffman also noted that weekly active users for search grew 30% over the past year, from 60 million to 80 million, while weekly active users for the AI-powered Reddit Answers feature increased from 1 million in the first quarter of 2025 to 15 million in the fourth quarter.