PayPal Brings Digital Wallet to ChatGPT Through OpenAI Partnership

PayPal announced that it will integrate its digital wallet directly into ChatGPT, becoming the first major payment platform embedded in OpenAI’s Instant Checkout feature. The partnership connects ChatGPT’s 800 million weekly users with PayPal’s network of tens of millions of merchants, with full implementation scheduled for 2026.

The deal centers on PayPal’s adoption of the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP), an open standard developed by OpenAI and Stripe that enables AI agents to manage purchases. PayPal will handle payment processing for merchants using Instant Checkout, managing merchant routing, payment validation, and orchestration behind the scenes.

Users will be able to complete purchases within ChatGPT in just a few taps, accessing multiple funding options including bank accounts, PayPal balances, and credit cards. The integration includes PayPal’s buyer and seller protections along with post-purchase services such as order tracking and dispute resolution.

Merchant Network Expansion

The partnership will make product catalogs from both small businesses and major retail brands discoverable within ChatGPT. PayPal’s ACP server functions as a trusted access layer that eliminates the need for individual merchant integrations while maintaining security and compliance standards.

Merchants across sectors including apparel, fashion, beauty, home improvement, and electronics will gain access to ChatGPT’s user base. PayPal’s system allows customers to buy directly from merchants, with payments flowing directly to sellers who maintain control over order acceptance and post-purchase experiences.

OpenAI launched Instant Checkout on September 29 for Free, Plus, and Pro ChatGPT users in the United States, initially featuring Etsy sellers and Shopify merchants. The Agentic Commerce Protocol operates under an Apache 2.0 open-source license, allowing any business to implement the specification.

Salesforce announced integration plans on October 14, building Instant Checkout support for its Agentforce Commerce platform. PayPal joins Stripe as a payment processor supporting the protocol, which works across web, iOS, and Android devices.

AI Strategy Expansion

Beyond commerce, PayPal is scaling its artificial intelligence capabilities through expanded OpenAI access. The company will deploy ChatGPT Enterprise to its more than 24,000 employees, enable engineers with Codex capabilities, and expand direct use of OpenAI’s APIs to accelerate product development.

PayPal stock surged 15% in premarket trading following the announcement, jumping from $70.77 to $81.15. The company also raised its full-year 2025 earnings guidance to $5.35-$5.39 per share, up from its previous forecast of $5.15-$5.30, exceeding analyst estimates.

CEO Alex Chriss highlighted the strategic opportunity, positioning PayPal as payments infrastructure for AI-driven commerce. The partnership builds on similar agreements with Google and AI search engine Perplexity, expanding PayPal’s presence in emerging conversational AI shopping experiences.

PayPal expects transaction margin dollar growth of 6% to 7% for 2025, excluding interest on customer balances. The company’s integration with ChatGPT represents its most significant move into agentic commerce, where AI assistants handle product discovery and purchasing on behalf of users.

The partnership aims to streamline the journey from browsing to purchasing, reducing friction in online transactions by keeping users within the ChatGPT interface. ChatGPT’s 800 million weekly users will gain access to PayPal checkout, while PayPal’s 400+ million users can shop within ChatGPT.