Top European online fashion retailer Zalando launched its first AI shopping agent on Tuesday. The move came amid concerns that artificial intelligence could disrupt online retail.
It followed a third-quarter gross margin report that came in below market expectations. Shares in the German company fell 5 percent in early trading. The agent will work inside the Zalando app through a new platform called Zalando Extended.
Zalando Extended lets users buy products from other online shops using AI agents on the Zalando app. The first pilot runs with home retailer Westwing. The company says the platform brings items Zalando does not sell itself onto its app.
The industry now faces so-called agentic commerce, where autonomous AI agents handle the full purchase for human shoppers, from price comparison across retailers to payment. Retailers are racing to adopt AI tools to stay competitive and widen the range of products on their platforms. Zalando also said customers who use its Zalando Assistant are twice as likely to complete a purchase.
Finance chief Anna Dimitrova said the shift to a platform business is speeding up, with partner business and retail media growing at a double-digit rate and B2B revenue up almost 28 percent.
Zalando reported a gross profit margin of 38.7 percent, which missed expectations. Analysts at Jefferies and JPMorgan said investments played a part. The company said the 0.9 point dip mostly reflected sharper promotions in its own retail business, especially sneakers.
Revenue grew 5.1 percent to EUR 3.17 billion (USD 3.55 billion), above the EUR 3.15 billion analysts expected. Gross merchandise value rose 7.5 percent to EUR 4.54 billion.
JPMorgan warned the stock could drift lower, citing “ongoing structural risk from agentic commerce development.” Zalando confirmed its full-year 2026 guidance. Management called the margin dip temporary and expects improvement in the fourth quarter.