India\u2019s e-commerce landscape is undergoing a fundamental shift \u2013 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.<\/span><\/p>\n At the 2026 Meta Marketing Summit E-Commerce edition<\/strong>, held across Bangalore and Mumbai, and attended by e-commerce leaders from across the country, the message was unmistakable: the future of shopping isn\u2019t typed into a search bar \u2013 it\u2019s found in a scroll, sparked by a creator, closed on a messaging surface, and beneath it all powered by AI.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIndia has no off-season for shopping anymore. Quick commerce and micro-festive moments have turned shopping into a permanent state \u2013 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\u2019re helping businesses of all sizes turn that moment of inspiration into a transaction \u2013 faster, smarter, and at scale.\u201d \u2013\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Meghna Apparao, Director, E-commerce & Retail, Meta (India)<\/b><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n AI is now the growth engine behind modern e-commerce marketing \u2013 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.<\/span><\/p>\n Just a few weeks ago, Meta launched new ways for AI to guide the shopping experience.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n We have recently announced that we\u2019re expanding the beta availability of <\/span>Meta AI Business Assistant<\/span><\/a> to advertisers and agencies. Meta AI business assistant lives directly within the tools advertisers already use \u2013 including <\/span>Ads Manager<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Meta Business Suite<\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>Business Support Home<\/span><\/a> \u2013 so there\u2019s no extra tab to manage and no learning curve. Additionally, we also recently announced <\/span>Meta Ads AI Connectors<\/span><\/a> in open beta \u2013 built for businesses of all sizes across regions to create, manage, and analyze campaigns directly in the third-party AI tools they already use.<\/span><\/p>\n 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 \u2014 searching, comparing, convincing \u2014 now takes seconds on the back of Reels and creator-led content.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAdopting 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.\u201d \u2013\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Arpan Biswas, Chief Marketing Officer, Ajio<\/b><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n As per a Meta-commissioned IPSOS study:<\/span> \u201cWhile 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.\u201d \u2013\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Khushboo Baderiya, Director, Performance Marketing, MarTech, Myntra<\/b><\/p>\n \u201cReliance 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.\u201d \u2013\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Manoj Jain, CMO Reliance Digital<\/b><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n 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.<\/span><\/p>\n We recently announced new tools to help creators tag, earn and grow:<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEmbracing 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.\u201d \u2013\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Mahesh Nallapati, AVP Strategy, Shein<\/b><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n 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.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n 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.<\/span><\/p>\n As these three macro trends\u2014AI, videofication, and messaging\u2014continue 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.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n
AI: The New Shopping Engine<\/b><\/h2>\n
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<\/h2>\nThe Videofication of Indian Shopping<\/b><\/h2>\n
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From chat to checkout<\/b><\/h2>\n