Amazon adds AI-generated product images to search results

Amazon announced on Wednesday that it will display AI-generated images of products within its shopping app based on users’ search queries. According to Amazon, the feature is intended to help consumers better find what they are looking for, particularly when they have a specific style in mind but do not know the exact term to describe it. The company cited examples such as cowl neck for shirts or rattan for furniture. Under the new system, when a user enters a search query, they will see a variety of AI-generated product images below their autocomplete suggestions. For instance, if a user searches for a blue gingham dress, the app might display several dress styles with varying lengths or sleeve types. Clicking on one of these synthetic images will direct the user to search results that match that style, utilizing the company’s visual search capabilities.

The rollout is part of a broader effort by Amazon to integrate artificial intelligence features into its retail platform. Earlier this month, Amazon replaced its Rufus AI chatbot—its previous AI chatbot—with Alexa for Shopping, a new natural language shopping query tool designed for voice and text. The company has also introduced other visual and search tools, such as Amazon Lens Live, which scans products in a camera’s view to find visual matches. Other features include AI-generated shoppable collages to direct users to curated fashion style pages, the ability to add text to visual searches, and a lock screen visual search widget for iOS. Additionally, last year, Amazon rolled out a short audio product summary feature where AI experts describe product highlights. The company also already uses AI to summarize customer reviews, allowing shoppers to quickly see the key pros and cons of a product.

However, the decision to display synthetic visuals has drawn sharp criticism. In what may be one of the more questionable uses of AI to date, critics argue that it’s somewhat bananas for a retailer to make up fake products to guide search results. While Amazon frames the feature as a discovery tool, critics argue that it’s potentially misleading. Opponents argue that customers who do not read carefully may believe they are being directed to a page where they can purchase the exact product shown in the AI-generated image, only to find that the specific item is unavailable. Critics also question the necessity of generating fake product images when the platform already hosts a vast catalog of real photographs of actual products.

Why it matters

Amazon’s integration of AI-generated visuals into e-commerce search highlights the tension between using generative AI to improve product discovery and the risk of confusing consumers with synthetic, non-existent inventory.