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Shipt becomes the latest delivery app with an AI shopping assistant

2026-09-09 | original

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Why This Matters

Shipt's launch of "Ask Shipt" shows how quickly conversational AI assistants are becoming table stakes in delivery apps, arriving the same day as Instacart's Clementine and following similar tools from Uber Eats and DoorDash. For consumers, it shifts grocery shopping from keyword search to prompts, photos, and budget-based requests that generate ready-to-buy carts. For Target, it extends the AI push already underway on Target.com into its same-day delivery arm.

Key Takeaways

Shipt's "Ask Shipt" turns natural-language prompts, photos of dishes, and budget limits into ready-to-buy carts; it's live now in the app and on Shipt.com.
The launch lands the same day as Instacart's Clementine, with Uber Eats and DoorDash having shipped similar assistants this year \u2014 AI carts are becoming a baseline feature.
It builds on Target's broader AI rollout, including photo search and review summaries on Target.com.

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In Brief

Shipt, the same-day delivery platform owned by Target, is the latest delivery app to join the AI cart race. The company announced on Wednesday that its new “Ask Shipt” tool will help customers shop more intuitively and turn prompts into customized ready-to-buy carts.

With this launch, Shipt joins a growing list of delivery platforms baking AI assistants into their apps. Just this morning, Instacart launched a new AI-powered grocery shopping assistant called Clementine, while Uber Eats and DoorDash have also introduced similar AI assistants this year.

Users can ask the assistant to do things like “Create a cart for my Saturday tailgate for 25 people and include some brunch items,” or “Build a cart for easy school lunches and after-school snacks,” Shipt says.

They can also upload a photo of a dish they saw online or at a restaurant, and the assistant will identify and add all of the ingredients to a cart. Additionally, users can ask for ideas based on their budget, such as a weeknight meal for a family of five under $35.

The tool’s launch follows the recent addition of other AI features on Target.com itself, including AI-powered photo search, customer review summaries, and other personalized shopping experiences.

Ask Shipt is available now in the Shipt app and on Shipt.com.

Explore topics: shipt ask shipt target instacart ai shopping assistant