AI Assistants Become Transactional and Reshape High-Stakes Workflows

Google is testing Gemini and AI Mode purchases through Walmart-owned Flipkart in India, indicating a move from product discovery toward agent-mediated transactions. Separately, insurers report roughly $942 million in additional healthcare costs associated with AI-linked coding and complexity changes, highlighting unresolved questions about merchant neutrality, payment responsibility, incentives, accountability, and measurable outcomes.