In a pioneering advancement merging conversational AI with digital payments, OpenAI has partnered with India’s National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and Razorpay to test UPI payments directly within ChatGPT. This new feature enables users to shop directly in the chat, with Bigbasket being the first platform to implement it. Officially announced on October 9, 2025, this initiative represents a unique effort to link India’s real-time payments system with an AI chatbot. According to the companies’ joint statement, the pilot program aims to evaluate how AI agents can autonomously and securely conduct transactions while maintaining full user control.
Currently, the collaboration is in a testing phase, concentrating on how AI-driven payments can improve user convenience and transform digital commerce across various industries. Major banks like Axis Bank and Airtel Payments Bank have signed on as initial banking partners for the pilot. Bigbasket, part of the Tata Group, is the inaugural service allowing users to shop directly through ChatGPT using UPI. This functionality enables users to browse products, place orders, and complete payments—all within the chat interface—without needing to switch between different apps or websites.
Oliver Jay, Managing Director of International Strategy at OpenAI, expressed enthusiasm about collaborating with NPCI to merge advanced AI with UPI, recognized as one of the most reliable real-time payment networks, to usher in a new era of smooth and secure commerce. India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) remains crucial to the country’s digital economy, handling over 20 billion transactions monthly. With this pilot, OpenAI and NPCI seek to investigate how conversational AI can effectively integrate with current financial frameworks to simplify and humanize digital transactions. At the Global Fintech Fest 2025, NPCI also unveiled new AI-driven innovations, including AI-based UPI Help, supported by its Small Language Model (SLM), to assist users with payments, mandates, and real-time dispute resolutions.
Other innovations featured IoT payments via UPI, allowing transactions through connected devices like cars and smart TVs, and UPI Reserve Pay, enabling users to set and manage credit limits for specific purchases. Currently, the UPI-on-ChatGPT feature is available to select users and partner platforms as part of the pilot launch. The next steps will involve assessing user experience, security, and transaction reliability before a broader public rollout. If successful, this collaboration could lead to a transformative approach to commerce where AI tools facilitate transactions in a more conversational and contextual manner, making digital transactions as straightforward as chatting.