PayPal to connect millions of merchants to ChatGPT in 2026

SAN JOSE - PayPal (Market cap: $67.12B), a prominent player in financial services with annual revenue of $32.29B, announced Tuesday it will adopt the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP) to expand its payment capabilities within ChatGPT, enabling users to make purchases directly through the AI platform. According to InvestingPro analysis, the company’s strong financial health and perfect Piotroski Score of 9 position it well for this strategic expansion.

Starting in 2026, PayPal will connect its global network of tens of millions of merchants to ChatGPT, making their product catalogs discoverable and purchasable through the AI assistant. The integration will span various retail categories including apparel, fashion, beauty, home improvement, and electronics. Trading at a P/E ratio of 15.15, InvestingPro’s Fair Value analysis suggests PayPal is currently undervalued, potentially making this strategic move even more significant for investors.

According to the press release, PayPal will also support OpenAI’s Instant Checkout feature, processing payments and offering multiple funding options such as bank accounts, PayPal balance, and cards. The service will include PayPal’s buyer and seller protections along with post-purchase services like tracking and dispute resolution. Discover more insights about PayPal’s growth potential and 6 additional ProTips with a comprehensive InvestingPro subscription, including exclusive access to detailed Pro Research Reports.

"Hundreds of millions of people turn to ChatGPT each week for help with everyday tasks, including finding products they love, and over 400 million use PayPal to shop," said Alex Chriss, President and CEO of PayPal, in the company statement.

The partnership extends beyond commerce, with PayPal expanding access to ChatGPT Enterprise for its 24,000+ employees and utilizing OpenAI’s APIs and Codex for product development.

PayPal will manage merchant routing, payment validation, and orchestration through its ACP server, creating what the company describes as "a trusted, scalable, and compliant access layer" that won’t require individual merchant integrations.

The announcement represents a significant expansion of AI-powered commerce capabilities, though the full implementation is not expected until 2026.

In other recent news, Coinbase has launched new business payment tools utilizing the USDC stablecoin. The company introduced global payouts and payment links on Coinbase Business, aimed at streamlining cross-border payments with lower fees and instant settlement. Meanwhile, PayPal Holdings Inc. has been in the spotlight after a mistake by stablecoin issuer Paxos led to the accidental minting of $300 trillion in PYUSD stablecoin, which was quickly rectified. PayPal also announced the upcoming launch of PayPal Ads Manager, a new advertising platform for small businesses, expected to roll out in early 2026. This development aims to help small businesses create their own retail media networks. On the analyst front, Goldman Sachs downgraded PayPal from Neutral to Sell, citing transaction margin headwinds and maintaining a price target of $70.00. Jefferies also maintained a Hold rating on PayPal, with concerns over the growth of branded payment volume. These recent developments reflect ongoing changes and challenges within the financial technology sector.

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