Consumer trust in AI Agents redefines snack purchasing trends
The findings highlight a rapid behavioral transition from manual online browsing to automated decision-making in everyday consumer packaged goods categories.
USA – Artificial intelligence agents are gaining ground among snack and beverage consumers as shoppers increasingly turn to generative AI to discover products, compare options and make purchasing decisions, according to the latest Consumer Pulse Research from Accenture.
The findings come from Accenture’s “Talk to My AI Agent” study, part of its 2026 Consumer Pulse Research, which surveyed 25,000 consumers globally and drew a sample of 1,518 snack and non-alcoholic beverage respondents across 16 countries.
New research highlighted by Baking & Snack indicates that consumers are becoming increasingly comfortable with AI taking a more active role in grocery shopping, creating new opportunities for snack and beverage manufacturers to influence purchasing decisions through AI-powered commerce.
According to Accenture research cited in the report, 61% of consumers want an AI agent that can shop across multiple grocery retailers on their behalf and split their baskets.
The finding signals a potential shift away from traditional online grocery shopping, where consumers manually search retailer websites, compare products and complete transactions themselves.
Instead, AI agents could increasingly perform these activities based on individual preferences, budgets, and shopping habits.
Consumer expectations for generative AI are also strengthening. Accenture found that 71% of respondents expect generative AI to influence at least half of their spending decisions during the next 12 months.
For snack and beverage companies, this could make AI recommendations an increasingly important part of product discovery, particularly as shoppers seek convenient ways to identify products that meet specific nutritional, dietary, price or taste preferences.
The trend is already becoming visible in snack purchasing behavior. Research reported by Food Business News found that consumers have been moving away from social commerce and conventional digital searches for snacks in favor of artificial intelligence.
The development suggests that food brands may need to rethink how they present product information so that it can be accurately interpreted and recommended by AI systems.
Physical stores are also expected to remain relevant despite the growth of AI-assisted shopping.
Accenture found that 87% of consumers believe AI will affect the role of physical stores, while 31% expect stores to become more important as places for experiences.
This suggests that AI-driven product discovery could complement rather than completely replace traditional retail, with consumers using digital tools before visiting stores to purchase or experience products.
For manufacturers, the rise of AI agents introduces a new competitive environment in which product data, transparency and digital discoverability could become as important as conventional marketing. Food and beverage companies are increasingly being encouraged to ensure that product descriptions, ingredients, nutrition information and other key attributes are accurate and accessible to AI systems.
The growing acceptance of AI agents could therefore reshape the snack and beverage marketplace.
As consumers delegate more shopping tasks to intelligent systems, brands that provide reliable information and products that align closely with consumer preferences may gain greater visibility in an increasingly AI-mediated retail environment.
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