Reddit announced on Thursday that it’s testing a new AI search tool that pairs community recommendations with products from its shopping and advertising partners.
A select group of users in the U.S. will begin to see search results featuring interactive product carousels complete with pricing, images, and direct purchase links.
This announcement is part of Reddit’s effort to blend its community-driven platform with e-commerce options. This follows last year’s launch of its first shoppable ad product, Dynamic Product Ads (DPA), which provides personalized product recommendations based on user interests.
Users included in the test searching for terms like “best noise-canceling headphones” or “electronic gift ideas for a college student” will see a carousel of related products at the bottom of the results.
This carousel will highlight products mentioned by users in related discussions. Tapping a product allows users to view details and be directed to the retailer to purchase.
“This feature surfaces top-recommended products directly from discussions, giving redditors instant information about any product,” the company noted in a blog post. “This test aims to make Reddit easier to navigate while highlighting community perspectives. We’ll refine this feature based on user feedback.”
Platforms like TikTok and Instagram have integrated shopping features for some time, and Reddit is following this trend. Other tech platforms are also exploring AI-driven shopping; for example, OpenAI’s ChatGPT introduced an “Instant Checkout” feature last September for making Etsy and Shopify purchases within conversations.
Thursday’s announcement follows statements from Reddit CEO Steve Huffman during the firm’s earnings release last week, indicating that the platform’s AI search engine could be a major business opportunity, both as a product and a revenue source.
In addition, Huffman highlighted a 30% increase in weekly active users for search over the past year, rising from 60 million to 80 million, and a rise in users for the AI-powered Reddit Answers feature from 1 million to 15 million from the first to the fourth quarter of 2025.