Australian shoppers warm to AI for holiday shopping

Australian shoppers have become more confident that artificial intelligence will help with holiday shopping, according to research from Sinch. The increase was the fastest among the eight markets in the study.

The survey found that 40% of Australian consumers now expect AI to make holiday shopping easier, up from 29% a year earlier. Over the same period, the global figure fell from 48% to 43%. That marks a reversal for Australia after it ranked as the least confident market in the previous survey.

The change comes as households remain under financial pressure. Australians were the most likely of the markets surveyed to say they planned to cut spending this year, with 45% expecting to spend less and 22% expecting to spend more.

That backdrop appears to be shaping how consumers view automated tools. Rather than showing broad enthusiasm for AI, the findings point to interest in practical tasks that may save time or reduce friction while shopping.

The most commonly cited use for an AI chatbot was checking order status, selected by 53% of Australian respondents. That was followed by learning about a product before making a purchase decision at 44%, and contacting customer service outside business hours at 40%.

Privacy remained the main concern around AI for Australian shoppers. Some 47% named privacy as their top concern, slightly above the global average of 43%.

Trust in human judgment also remained strong. The study found that 57% of Australian consumers would trust a person's product recommendation over one generated by AI, while half said they would trust a human more than an AI voice agent to resolve an issue.

Messaging choices

The research also examined how consumers want retailers and other brands to contact them during peak shopping periods. In Australia, 53% said they wanted order updates by SMS, the highest level among the regions surveyed, while 76% said they wanted updates by email.

Promotional messages showed a different pattern. Some 46% of Australian shoppers said they wanted to hear about promotions through social media advertising, while 56% said brands were already sending more conversational messages than they were a year earlier.

Sinch linked those preferences to broader changes in business messaging volumes. Globally, rich messaging traffic in November 2025 was close to four times higher than the previous year, driven by channels including WhatsApp.

Australian data showed a shift in the timing of retail communications. Message volumes in 2024 peaked on Black Friday, but in 2025 the high point extended across the Black Friday and Cyber Monday period, with heavier activity on surrounding days as well.

Consumer caution

The findings suggest Australian consumers are becoming more willing to use AI in limited, task-based ways even as caution persists around data use and automated decision-making. The mix of tighter budgets and rising comfort with simple digital tools may influence how retailers design customer service and order support during major shopping periods.

For businesses, the data points to a consumer base that is highly cost-conscious and selective about where automation is useful. It also suggests message delivery matters, with consumers showing different preferences for service updates and promotional outreach.

The study was based on an online survey of 2,501 consumers across eight countries, including 351 in Australia. Australia was the only Asia-Pacific market included in the research.

Ginger Kidd, Vice President of Marketing, APAC, Sinch, said: "Australian shoppers are being more deliberate with their money this year, and they are increasingly open to letting AI handle the practical parts of shopping - whether that's checking an order, comparing a product, or getting an answer out of hours. Their confidence in using these automated tools is climbing faster, even though it started from the lowest baseline a year ago. The takeaway is straightforward: give AI a clear, purposeful job, and meet customers on the conversational channels they prefer for the things that matter most to them. That way, brands can help customers spend smarter while making their own communication significantly more efficient."