Russians Offered a New Way to Shop Online
Yandex becomes the first company in Russia to integrate artificial intelligence directly with online stores.
Yandex has launched Russia’s first standard for integrating artificial intelligence with online retailers, the company said in a statement. Millions of users will now be able to make purchases directly through a chat with Alice AI. By connecting to the Yandex Commerce Protocol (YCP), online stores can receive orders straight from the chat interface. Payments will be processed via Yandex Pay or Split services.
The new protocol outlines four integration scenarios: stores built on Yandex KIT are already connected to the system; retailers using 1C-Bitrix must install and configure a ready-made module; merchants operating on Yandex Market can join through the Yandex Products dashboard. If a retailer relies on its own proprietary solutions, integration will be available via API. As of now, 3,500 stores can already sell products directly through Alice AI.
A Commercial Trend
According to Valery Stromov, head of Alice and smart devices at Yandex, agent-based commerce is a global trend.
More than 19 million people use Alice AI daily. They now have access to another convenient and practical feature.
