UPI Inside ChatGPT: The NPCI-Razorpay Agentic Payments Pilot Explained for Sellers

On 9 October 2025, NPCI (which runs UPI), Razorpay and OpenAI announced a pilot called Agentic Payments, letting users find and pay for products by UPI inside ChatGPT. BigBasket and Vi were named as the first merchants. It was announced as a pilot. We found no later report that it opened to all sellers, so as of November 2026 treat it as limited and unconfirmed for ordinary merchants.

What was announced on 9 October 2025?

Razorpay, NPCI and OpenAI launched the pilot so that users can find, choose and pay for products through AI assistants such as ChatGPT without leaving the chat. It uses Razorpay's payments stack, NPCI's UPI infrastructure and OpenAI's models, with Axis Bank and Airtel Payments Bank as partner banks.

BigBasket, the Tata-owned grocer, and Vi, the telecom operator, were the first merchants named. Users could buy groceries or mobile recharges through ChatGPT. TechCrunch also reported that Razorpay said the pilot was rolling out nationwide and would be widely available "in the coming months". We did not find a later announcement confirming that.

How does a UPI payment inside ChatGPT work?

The reports describe two NPCI features underneath it:

• UPI Reserve Pay: a protocol that blocks a specific amount of funds for future debits to designated merchants.
• UPI Circle: a feature that delegates UPI authentication.

Razorpay built the merchant integration layer that lets businesses transact through AI chatbots. Users pre-authorise the amount using two-factor authentication, and the AI companies do not get access to payment data.

Business Today reports that an AI agent can start and complete a transaction only after the user explicitly approves it, that users get real-time payment tracking and can revoke permissions instantly.

Neither article gave transaction or spending caps. TechCrunch notes no revenue-sharing model for partners had been set at launch.

What did the pilot look like in use?

Entrackr, also dated 9 October 2025, gives an example flow: a user asks ChatGPT for recipe ingredients, reviews BigBasket options, confirms, and pays by UPI, with real-time tracking of the transaction. It described the pilot as still at the pilot stage, aiming to let users "discover, shop and pay for products within a single chat interface". Planned next steps it listed were personalised checkout and user-initiated automated payments.

The same report puts UPI at about 20 billion transactions a month. That is Entrackr's figure and we have not checked it against NPCI's published statistics.

Notice what the flow needs from a merchant: a catalogue the assistant can read, live stock and price, and a payment integration. The first is the only part a marketplace seller controls.

Is there a global standard behind this?

Not one that this pilot is documented to use. The reports we read name UPI Reserve Pay and UPI Circle, not any agent protocol. Separately, Shopify said on 11 January 2026 that it co-developed a Universal Commerce Protocol with Google, an open standard so AI agents can connect and transact with merchants. The two efforts are different projects, and we found no statement linking India's UPI pilot to that protocol.

Which merchants and AI models were involved?

All rows are from TechCrunch's report of the launch. We found no confirmation that the Gemini and Claude versions launched.

Can I, as a seller, use it?

Not by applying for it, as far as we can confirm. The reports name only two merchants and say Razorpay was "in talks" with others. Razorpay is the integration layer, so if you already use Razorpay for your own website, ask your account manager whether agentic payments are open to your account. We did not find a public application page.

If you sell only on Amazon, Flipkart, Meesho or quick commerce, you do not integrate payments at all. The marketplace takes the payment. Any AI-assistant purchase would have to go through the marketplace's own systems, which is covered in our agentic commerce guide for India.

How is this different from Shopify's ChatGPT channel?

Different model. Shopify says ChatGPT is a discovery channel: the buyer is sent to your own online store to check out, and ChatGPT charges no fees beyond standard payment processing. That channel needs the store to sell to US customers. The India pilot is about paying inside the conversation by UPI. See our Shopify Agentic Storefronts guide for the Shopify side.

What should a seller do now?

1. Fix product data. An assistant recommends what it can read: complete attributes, clear titles, accurate price and stock.
2. Keep UPI acceptance clean on your own website through a gateway that supports it. For rules on UPI for small merchants, see UPI small merchant rules.
3. Watch for announcements from NPCI, Razorpay, your payment gateway and each marketplace. Do not plan revenue around the pilot.
4. Keep refunds simple. An agent-led purchase still needs a clear return and refund path under your policy.

What questions should you ask your payment gateway?

If you run your own website, these are fair questions for Razorpay or whichever gateway you use. We have no public answers to them, so they are questions, not claims:

1. Is agentic payment, or an AI-assistant checkout, available for my account, and in which assistants?
2. Does it use UPI Reserve Pay or UPI Circle, and what are the per-transaction and per-user limits?
3. Are there extra fees, or a revenue share, compared with a normal UPI payment?
4. How are refunds, failed payments and disputes handled when the buyer paid through an assistant?
5. What data about the buyer and the order do I receive, and what does the AI company see?

Write the answers down. They also tell you whether the pilot is real for you or still a headline.

Why does this matter for marketplace sellers at all?

Because shoppers may start product searches in an assistant instead of a marketplace search box. Amazon and Flipkart are building their own assistants, covered in our AI shopping assistants comparison, and ChatGPT shopping is discussed in ChatGPT shopping for sellers. Whichever surface wins, each reads the same thing: your product data. That is why the work stays the same while the payment layer evolves.

What is not confirmed?

• Whether the pilot has gone generally available. We found no 2026 update.
• Spending limits, fees or revenue sharing for merchants. Not stated in the reports.
• Whether Gemini and Claude versions went live.
• How, or whether, Amazon.in, Flipkart or Meesho sellers will be reachable through such payments. Not announced.

FAQ

Can I pay by UPI inside ChatGPT today? The pilot was announced on 9 October 2025 for users shopping with merchants such as BigBasket. We found no later confirmation that it is open to everyone, so we cannot say it is generally available in November 2026.

What are UPI Reserve Pay and UPI Circle? Per TechCrunch's report, UPI Reserve Pay blocks a set amount of funds for future debits to designated merchants, and UPI Circle delegates UPI authentication. Both are NPCI features, and the pilot is built on them.

Does the AI company see my customers' payment data? TechCrunch reported that AI companies will not get access to payment data in the pilot. Business Today says payments need user-authorised authentication and the user can revoke permissions instantly.

Does my Amazon or Flipkart store need to do anything? No payment integration is needed, because the marketplace collects payment. Your useful action is a complete, accurate catalogue so assistants can read your listings.

Is the pilot only with OpenAI? It was led by ChatGPT. Razorpay said proof-of-concept work was done with Gemini and Claude, due to go live for consumers in a few weeks. We could not confirm that they did.

Is this payment method safe for buyers? The reports describe user approval for each transaction and instant revocation. This page is general information, not financial or legal advice. Check terms with your payment gateway and a professional adviser.

What to do next

Treat agentic payments as a watch item and put effort into the part you control, the catalogue. Blooprint, a Bengaluru e-commerce agency, can help through catalogue and listing optimisation.