HitPay, a payments platform for small and medium enterprises in Southeast Asia, has announced that its online stores are now automatically discoverable by AI shopping assistants like ChatGPT and Perplexity. This update, effective from 14 July 2026, comes at no additional cost to merchants, requiring no developer involvement or setup fees.
The move addresses a significant challenge for small businesses in the region, which have traditionally relied on social platforms and digital marketplaces for customer engagement. With AI-led commerce projected to reach $3–5t globally by 2030, according to McKinsey, the ability to be found by AI assistants is becoming crucial. Currently, 39% of Asia-Pacific consumers use AI for online shopping, with another 40% planning to do so, as per Bain’s data.
HitPay’s solution involves making each online store’s catalogue, product names, prices, and stock levels machine-readable and updated throughout the day. This ensures that AI assistants access current information, enhancing the likelihood of small businesses appearing in AI-generated shopping recommendations. Aditya Haripurkar, Co-Founder and CEO of HitPay, stated, “We built this so that a home baker in Singapore, a clothing store in Manila, or a boutique in Kuala Lumpur is as findable as any established brand.”
Whilst completing purchases directly through AI assistants remains an emerging standard, HitPay’s focus is on ensuring visibility for smaller sellers as consumer behaviour shifts. This initiative is part of HitPay’s broader service offering, which includes support for various payment methods across the region.
