Google tests Flipkart checkout in Gemini and AI Mode in India

A checkout that leads to Flipkart

In the scenario observed by TechCrunch, tapping “Buy” opens a checkout page branded by Flipkart. That differs from the Google-hosted checkout flow the company described earlier this year. What technology powers the Flipkart test remains unknown.

Google told TechCrunch it regularly tests features intended to help people discover and connect with businesses, but did not share more about this experiment.

Earlier this month, Google said Flipkart was among the sellers it was working with in India on what it calls “agentic” commerce. It did not then disclose details or a launch timeline. Google also has a financial stake in Flipkart: in 2024, it invested about $350 million in a funding round led by Walmart and received a minority stake.

The protocol is not the product

Google introduced Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP) earlier this year as an open standard for AI agents to interact with merchants through stages of a purchase, including checkout. The company said shoppers would be able to buy eligible products through Gemini and AI Mode using a Google-hosted checkout page. It later expanded UCP so shoppers could instead go to a merchant’s site to complete a purchase.

The Flipkart test appears to use that second kind of handoff, but Google has not said whether UCP is involved. The distinction matters: a visible “Buy” button tells shoppers where the transaction goes, not what infrastructure connects the assistant to the seller.

India has more than a billion internet subscribers and is the world’s second-largest internet market. Flipkart and Amazon compete for online shoppers there, with rivalry intensifying during the holiday season, when both run some of their biggest sales and promotions of the year.

For now, the test does not make Google’s AI interface a universal shopping destination. In TechCrunch’s example, Amazon offers appeared alongside Flipkart’s, but only Flipkart’s could be purchased without leaving the AI interface.

The missing measure

Google and competitors including OpenAI are adding commerce features to AI services, looking to move from product answers and recommendations toward direct participation in shopping. But this test leaves the central consumer question unanswered: does keeping checkout inside an assistant make buying easier, or simply add another branded step before the retailer’s own checkout?

I think the choice to open a Flipkart-branded page is more revealing than the button itself. Google has described a path to its own checkout, yet this observed flow hands the transaction to the merchant. Until Google explains the technology behind the test and broadens access beyond selected products, the evidence points to a limited integration, not a settled model for AI shopping.