Agentic commerce marks a structural shift in how consumers discover, evaluate, and buy products. Shopping is moving from human-led decisions supported by digital tools to AI agents that can act more autonomously. While this offers unprecedented convenience, it also creates a new challenge: navigating the consumer’s need for trust and control in an automated world. Our new report explores this tension and what it means for the future of retail.

Led by Horizon Futures in partnership with Horizon Commerce, Blue Hour Studio, and Horizon SEO, this report grounds our insights in a 1,000-person survey of AI-forward shoppers, plus behavioral and cultural analysis.

Here are a few highlights to get you started:

  • AI is a Daily Habit: AI is no longer experimental. 56% of AI-forward shoppers use it daily to optimize decisions, shifting them from casual browsers to deliberate optimizers.
  • The Control Paradox: Consumers want AI to do the heavy lifting of research, but they aren’t ready to give up the final say. The new mantra for brands is “help me decide, don’t decide for me.”
  • The “Automation Hangover”: Even successful AI-led purchases can leave 40% of consumers feeling anxious, creating a new emotional landscape for brands to manage.
  • The “Escape Hatch” is Non-Negotiable: When trust is broken, explanations aren’t enough. Consumers demand an “escape hatch,” prioritizing the ability to veto an AI decision (54%) and access easy returns (48%) above all else.

What’s Next for Brands?

  1. Empower, Don’t Replace: Position AI as an intelligent assistant that makes the user smarter but always leaves the final decision in their hands.
  2. Provide Reassurance, Not Just Results: Mitigate post-purchase anxiety by proactively confirming that the right choice was made.
  3. Build in an Escape Hatch: When trust is broken, users need simple, powerful ways to regain control, like one-click returns and human support.

The era of Agentic Commerce is not about replacing human decision-making, but augmenting it. The brands that succeed will be those that empower consumers, build trust through transparency, and provide reassurance at every step of the automated journey. It’s a fundamental shift from brand persuasion to consumer enablement.

To dive deeper into our findings, download the full report.