Agentic commerce is moving from concept to reality

Retailers are navigating rising customer expectations, intensifying competition and ongoing cost pressures while still being expected to deliver faster, more seamless experiences across an expanding mix of channels. As payments technology and regulation continue to evolve at pace, the bar for performance, reliability and scale keeps rising.

At the same time, commerce has become more fragmented than ever. Physical stores, ecommerce, mobile, social and emerging digital channels now sit side by side. Connecting these touchpoints into a single consistent experience without adding complexity or compromising performance has become one of retail’s greatest opportunities, and its toughest challenge.

For consumers, these pressures are felt most clearly at the checkout. Shoppers are highly attuned to value, increasingly intolerant of delays and quick to abandon experiences that feel unreliable. Whether online or in-store, payments play a defining role in how trust is built and how brands are judged.

The Adyen Index 2026 Australia Retail Report explores how Australian retailers and consumers are responding – tracking shifting behaviours, changing checkout expectations and persistent friction, from cost sensitivity and fraud to failed transactions. It also examines how businesses are approaching innovation, including AI and emerging models such as agentic commerce, as they modernise for performance today and resilience tomorrow.

- Hayley Fisher, Director, Australia & New Zealand