Jul 20, 2026
AI as a new shopping influence in Japan
For the first year of my Japan journey back in 2013, I got to live in Omotesando due to my husband's work. We definitely felt a bit out of place living there, given that there were buildings like Prada, Chanel, and Louis Vuitton a stone's throw away. Window shopping became a regular pastime, but actually buying one of those dream bags? That felt like something for another lifetime (and still does, really!)
These days, though, there's a place people are turning for luxury shopping advice, and that's AI.
A Japanese survey comparing ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity found that each AI takes a different approach when asked about expensive designer handbags. Depending on which AI you ask, you might be encouraged to save up and buy your dream bag, hunt for a second-hand bargain, or skip ownership altogether and rent one instead.
The researchers tested 13 shopping scenarios, ranging from people asking about specific luxury brands like Hermès, Chanel, and Louis Vuitton to more general questions about buying a designer bag or choosing the right handbag for special occasions.
One of the biggest differences came down to renting. Claude (when used without its search function) suggested renting or subscribing to luxury bags in 12 of the 13 scenarios. Gemini also frequently recommended rental services, often mentioning a luxury bag sharing service by name. Meanwhile, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude with search enabled were much more likely to recommend buying, whether that meant saving up, purchasing second-hand, or investing in a timeless piece.
The context of the question also seemed to matter. When asked about attending a wedding, some AI models suggested renting a bag since it might only be used once. However, when the scenario changed to something like a child's school entrance ceremony, most recommended buying a classic bag that could be used again for future events.
I personally found the survey results to be a good reminder that AI isn't a single source of truth. Two people asking exactly the same question on different platforms can receive completely different shopping advice.
Would you turn to AI for shopping advice?
3 Comments
TonetoEdo
19 hours ago
I admit, some of my research for work and blogging depends on Claude and Google AI in the browser. However, I don't rely on it for current information. Instead, most of the prompts are about historical or information I like to think of as "stable", e.g. statistics. No way do I expect rational, actionable responses on products/services from what are essentially Large Language Models. They can retrieve data points, but they aren't grounded in reality. So-called AI, really LLMs, churn out non-reproducible responses. So far.
helloalissa
14 hours ago
A student recently made a good point that AI has no intuition. A recent example is that using intuition to choose a restaurant in an unfamiliar area resulted in the best meal during a four day trip vs. using AI recommendations and getting the most expensive and least delicious meal.
BigfamJapan
7 hours ago
I avoid Gemini at all costs - the Google of today always has an ulterior motive; to make money for themselves. So, I click on "web" results when I use Google to bypass the slop it spurts out! I do run tests sometimes to see how in/accurate it is and to check just how much of my content it has stolen, but I don't use it personally. I have never used any of the others - am I a unicorn!? The only one I have tinkered with is Copilot as it is built into my laptop, but I don't trust any of them yet and that's largely from being hyper aware early on just how bad Gemini was - and still is! So, at this point in time (and probably for a long time to come) I would not turn to AI for shopping advice.