Meta leans into agentic commerce and personal AI with major 2026 rollout
Zuckerberg signals Meta’s AI shift toward agent-driven shopping and context-aware tools
Meta’s next big bet is starting to take shape, and it’s all about AI that knows you. During Meta’s latest earnings call, CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed that new agentic models and personalized AI features will begin rolling out “in the coming months,” pointing to a much more active push into what he calls “personal superintelligence.”
While details remain vague, Zuckerberg highlighted AI-powered shopping tools as a specific area of focus. These will help users discover the right products by tapping into Meta’s massive business catalog and, more importantly, their own personal context—what they like, who they follow, and how they behave across Meta’s platforms.
This article explores what’s coming, what it signals for AI-powered commerce, and why marketers should pay close attention.
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Here’s a table of contents for quick access:
- What Meta just announced about AI in 2026
- Why AI shopping assistants are a hot battleground
- What marketers should know about Meta’s AI play
Patrecia Meliana
What Meta just announced about AI in 2026
Zuckerberg told investors that Meta has rebuilt the foundation of its AI program over the past year and is now ready to start deploying new models and tools.
“In 2025, we rebuilt the foundations of our AI program,” Zuckerberg said. “Over the coming months, we’re going to start shipping our new models and products.”
He emphasized that this year would mark a turning point, stating: “This is going to be a big year for delivering personal superintelligence, accelerating our business, building infrastructure for the future, and shaping how our company will work going forward.”
Though he stopped short of announcing specific tools, one theme stood out: agentic commerce. Meta plans to launch AI-powered shopping agents that help users find relevant products through personalized, context-aware recommendations.
This vision leans heavily on Meta’s access to rich user data—from past behavior and content interactions to social connections. Zuckerberg believes this will give Meta a distinct edge in building truly “personal” AI assistants.
Why AI shopping assistants are a hot battleground
Meta’s ambitions come at a time when agentic commerce is heating up across the tech world.
OpenAI recently demoed shopping agents powered by GPT-4, while Google has begun integrating similar capabilities into Search and Shopping. Both companies are testing partnerships with major players like Stripe and Uber to enable seamless transactions through conversational interfaces.
The pitch is clear: move beyond static product listings and search bars, and let AI do the heavy lifting in finding, filtering, and even purchasing the right item for each user.
Meta’s version could be uniquely powerful given its ownership of Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp. Each platform already drives commerce through creators, product tagging, and chat-based customer support. Layering personalized AI agents on top could further compress the path from discovery to conversion.
The company also acquired agent developer Manus in December 2025, signaling its intention to own the stack behind these tools. At the time, Meta said it would both integrate Manus tech and continue offering the standalone service.
What marketers should know about Meta's AI play
Meta’s push into agentic commerce and personalized AI raises key questions for brand and performance marketers. Here’s what to watch:
- Expect new AI-driven shopping formats
If Meta rolls out agentic commerce broadly, marketers may need to adapt creatives and product feeds to fit new conversational or contextual shopping interfaces.
- Retargeting could get more granular
With AI agents tapping into personal histories and preferences, ad targeting might evolve from broad interest groups to real-time contextual matching. Brands should explore how to feed these agents relevant data or signals.
- Organic discovery may become AI-mediated
Just as SEO had to adapt to algorithmic curation, commerce brands might need new playbooks for AI-first product discovery. Think optimization for agent prompts rather than just feed rankings.
- Start testing AI-native tools
Meta’s infrastructure overhaul includes up to US$135 billion in capital expenditures by 2026, with much of it earmarked for AI. Expect product and campaign tools to change rapidly—especially those tied to Shops, Business Suite, and ads.
Marketers who understand how Meta’s agents interpret context and make decisions will have a head start.
