India’s e-commerce landscape is undergoing a fundamental shift – driven by advances in AI, video-first discovery, and conversational messaging. The traditional search-and-transact model is giving way to a dynamic, scroll-led discovery ecosystem that is transforming how people shop across the country including in tier-2 & 3 geographies.

At the 2026 Meta Marketing Summit E-Commerce edition, held across Bangalore and Mumbai, and attended by e-commerce leaders from across the country, the message was unmistakable: the future of shopping isn’t typed into a search bar – it’s found in a scroll, sparked by a creator, closed on a messaging surface, and beneath it all powered by AI. 

“India has no off-season for shopping anymore. Quick commerce and micro-festive moments have turned shopping into a permanent state – not an event, but a reflex. The journey has shifted from search-and-buy to discover-and-feel, driven by AI recommendations, short-form video, and conversational messaging. For brands, the mandate is simple: if you are not always on, you are already behind. With AI-powered tools and products such as Partnership Ads, GenAI-powered creative, and shoppable Reels, we’re helping businesses of all sizes turn that moment of inspiration into a transaction – faster, smarter, and at scale.” – Meghna Apparao, Director, E-commerce & Retail, Meta (India)

AI: The New Shopping Engine

AI is now the growth engine behind modern e-commerce marketing – improving relevance, automation, and measurable performance across discovery through conversion. With Instagram and Facebook emerging as the leading destination of product and brand discovery for Indian shoppers, our goal is to continuously launch new tools to enable brands to create more effective campaigns.

Just a few weeks ago, Meta launched new ways for AI to guide the shopping experience. 

• Marketers can now upload an image or video as their featured creative, and Meta’s AI will automatically include products from a brand catalog as a carousel if it’s likely to improve performance. 
• We are also beginning to explore the ability to create UGC-style videos with avatars and voiceovers alongside the studio-style generation that was introduced last year. The aim, with this feature, is to make it easier to produce video ads with engaging storytelling across a variety of campaign needs.
• Generative AI voiceover translation capabilities are also now available for more advertisers, and we are introducing translations for text in image overlays making it easier for businesses to connect with people in their preferred language.

We have recently announced that we’re expanding the beta availability of Meta AI Business Assistant to advertisers and agencies. Meta AI business assistant lives directly within the tools advertisers already use – including Ads Manager, Meta Business Suite, and Business Support Home – so there’s no extra tab to manage and no learning curve. Additionally, we also recently announced Meta Ads AI Connectors in open beta – built for businesses of all sizes across regions to create, manage, and analyze campaigns directly in the third-party AI tools they already use.

The Videofication of Indian Shopping

Short-form video is making shopping come alive for millions of shoppers across India emerging as one of the most potent forces reshaping how consumers discover, evaluate, and purchase products. What once took days of deliberation — searching, comparing, convincing — now takes seconds on the back of Reels and creator-led content. 

“Adopting Catalog Product Video as a business-as-usual strategy has embedded video-led discovery into our always-on media approach, driving approximately 20% higher efficiency. We are now set to test GenCPV to scale videofication across our entire catalog.” – Arpan Biswas, Chief Marketing Officer, Ajio

As per a Meta-commissioned IPSOS study:

• Reels across Meta platforms emerged as India’s leading short-form video platform with 92% of users preferring it over other formats that were surveyed.
• Instagram Reels saw 33% higher engagement for creators compared to other surveyed platforms.
• Meta also emerged as the leading platform for brand discovery, with 80% of Indians discovering new brands on its platforms.

“While we have historically used third-party tools to create Catalog Product Video templates, we are now excited to test the GENCPV templates available on Meta to further enhance our video-first discovery.” – Khushboo Baderiya, Director, Performance Marketing, MarTech, Myntra

“Reliance Digital has embraced a Reels-forward strategy, leveraging it to drive brand awareness and business outcomes on Meta. Central to this is our collaboration with regional creators on Meta, enabling authentic connections that resonate with diverse communities, delivering stronger engagement and measurable impact, making Meta an important pillar in our marketing strategy.” – Manoj Jain, CMO Reliance Digital

Leading marketplaces are leaning into this videofication, partnering with creators to add credibility and context, making products feel more relatable and seamlessly moving shoppers from inspiration to consideration.

We recently announced new tools to help creators tag, earn and grow:

• Now creators can create shoppable moments of discovery by sharing products from a brand’s catalog or through product links directly in their Reels.
• Additionally, we have also announced that it is expanding Reels Trending Ads inventory by adding new trending content categories, including TV & Movies, Travel, Business, Finance & Investments, giving more opportunities for advertisers to place their brand alongside the most culturally relevant Reels when people are most engaged. 

“Embracing Dynamic Media has allowed us to let machine learning decide whether to serve a video or an image based on individual customer responsiveness, ensuring our creatives are always delivered in the most engaging and efficient format.” – Mahesh Nallapati, AVP Strategy, Shein

From chat to checkout

Bridging the gap between discovery and transaction is the rapid ascent of paid messaging, particularly WhatsApp, which is evolving into an end-to-end commerce platform. With 72% of product discovery now happening on WhatsApp, the platform facilitates two-way conversations that support everything from personalized recommendations to post-purchase service. 

Brands are leveraging this conversational commerce engine to run targeted campaigns, offer virtual try-on experiences, and provide high-volume transactional updates. As per a Retail Whitepaper released jointly by Meta and the Retailers Association of India (RAI), this personalized path from discovery to repeat purchase is proving highly effective, with retailers seeing a 61% average improvement in return on ad spend and a 62% increase in leads generated. Nearly 60% of users are likely to buy a product after seeing an offer on WhatsApp.

As these three macro trends—AI, videofication, and messaging—continue to converge, they are setting the stage for the next era of shopping in India. The future of Indian e-commerce is interactive, intelligent, and deeply connected, promising an exciting journey ahead for both brands and consumers as they navigate this vibrant digital marketplace.