Universal Commerce Protocol and the Future of Luxury Retail: Why AI Agents Need Human Experts
The new standard for AI shopping is here. Here’s what it means for jewelry retailers — and why video commerce matters more than ever.
A New Era of Commerce Just Began
On January 11, 2026, Google announced the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP) at NRF — a standardized way for AI agents to shop on behalf of consumers.
Backed by Shopify, Target, Walmart, Etsy, PayPal, and over 20 other major companies, UCP enables a future where customers simply tell an AI what they want, and the agent handles everything: discovery, comparison, checkout, and even returns.
For retail, this is transformational.
But for luxury and jewelry retail, it raises a critical question:
What happens to high-touch, expertise-driven sales when AI agents mediate commerce?
The answer reveals a significant opportunity for retailers who understand where human expertise fits in an agent-driven world.
How UCP Works
The Universal Commerce Protocol standardizes communication between AI agents and merchants across three core areas:
Discovery
Agents query merchant catalogs to find products matching user intent. “Find a diamond pendant under $2,000” becomes a structured query across multiple jewelers.
Purchase
Agents initiate and complete checkout on behalf of users, handling payment, shipping, and discounts through standardized APIs.
Support
Post-purchase interactions — order tracking, returns, customer service — also flow through the protocol.
Technical Foundation
- REST API as primary transport
- Model Context Protocol (MCP) and Agent2Agent (A2A) for advanced interactions
- OAuth 2.0 and PCI-DSS compliance for security
- Open-source and platform-agnostic
Merchants expose “profiles” that tell agents what capabilities they support — guest checkout, loyalty programs, inventory visibility, and more.
What This Means for Retail
For Commodity Retail: Full Automation
For products that are:
- Well-specified
- Price-driven
- Low-consideration
- Frequently purchased
UCP is a clear win. Agents handle everything efficiently. Consumers save time. Merchants gain access to AI-mediated demand.
For Luxury Retail: A Different Story
But jewelry and luxury goods don’t fit neatly into this model.
Consider what’s missing when an AI agent shops for a diamond ring:
| What Agents Can Do | What Agents Can’t Do |
|---|---|
| Compare specifications | Explain why one cut sparkles differently |
| Find lowest prices | Understand emotional significance |
| Check availability | Recommend based on personal style |
| Apply discount codes | Reassure for once-in-a-lifetime purchases |
| Complete checkout | Build trust and relationship |
For high-consideration purchases, the decision is the hard part, not the transaction.
And that’s exactly where human expertise becomes irreplaceable.
The Opportunity: Hybrid Commerce
The smartest luxury retailers will recognize that UCP creates a two-part opportunity:
Part 1: Embrace Agent-Mediated Discovery
Let AI agents find your products. Make your catalog UCP-compatible. Ensure your inventory, pricing, and product data are clean and structured.
Why? Because discovery is shifting. Customers increasingly ask AI assistants for recommendations rather than Googling or browsing. If your products aren’t agent-discoverable, you’re invisible to a growing segment of shoppers.
Part 2: Own the Consultation Layer
When customers discover options through AI, give them a human expert to guide the final decision.
This is where video commerce becomes strategic, not just tactical.
The flow looks like this:
- Customer tells AI: “Find me anniversary earrings, diamonds, around $3,000”
- Agent queries multiple jewelers via UCP
- Agent presents 10 options matching criteria
- Customer: “I like these three. Can I talk to someone?”
- Agent connects to live video consultation with a jewelry expert
- Expert asks about wife’s style, explains differences, makes recommendation
- Customer purchases with confidence through UCP
AI handles efficiency. Humans provide expertise.
This hybrid model captures the benefits of both worlds:
- Broad discovery through AI
- High conversion through human expertise
- Trust and confidence for high-value purchases
Why Video Commerce Is the Bridge
For luxury retailers, video commerce provides what AI agents cannot:
1. Visual Demonstration
Show how diamonds sparkle, how metals complement skin tones, how pieces look when worn. Specifications become tangible.
2. Expert Guidance
Answer questions in real-time. Explain trade-offs. Make personalized recommendations based on conversation, not just data.
3. Emotional Connection
For engagement rings, anniversary gifts, milestone purchases — customers want to feel confident. Human reassurance provides what algorithms cannot.
4. Trust Building
Video consultations create relationships. Customers return because they trust their advisor, not just your brand.
The Data Supports This
| Metric | Traditional E-commerce | Live Video Commerce |
|---|---|---|
| Conversion Rate | 2-3% | Up to 30% |
| Return Rate | 15-20% | Significantly lower |
| Average Order Value | Standard | Higher |
| Customer Confidence | Moderate | High |
For high-consideration purchases, the conversion advantage of video consultations is dramatic.
What Jewelry Retailers Should Do Now
Immediate Actions
1. Audit Your Product Data UCP requires clean, structured information. Ensure your inventory system can expose:
- Accurate stock levels
- Real-time pricing
- Complete product attributes (cut, clarity, carat, metal, etc.)
- High-quality images and specifications
2. Explore UCP Compatibility Work with your e-commerce platform to understand UCP integration timelines. Shopify merchants have a head start — Shopify is a founding UCP partner.
3. Build Video Consultation Capability If you don’t already offer live video consultations, now is the time. Platforms like Immerss provide:
- Seamless video calls embedded in your site
- AI-powered matching to connect customers with the right experts
- Integration with your inventory and CRM
- Analytics on consultation performance
Strategic Positioning
4. Train Your Team Video consultations require different skills than in-store sales. Invest in training experts to:
- Present products effectively on camera
- Build rapport quickly in virtual settings
- Guide decisions without pressure
- Handle technology smoothly
5. Think About the Customer Journey Map where AI-mediated discovery fits and where human expertise adds value:
- Initial search → Agent-mediated
- Comparison → Agent-mediated
- Final decision → Human expert
- Purchase → Agent-mediated (via UCP)
- Support → Mix of agent and human
6. Position Expertise as Differentiator In a world where agents can find products anywhere, why should customers buy from you?
Answer: Because your experts provide guidance that agents can’t.
Make this explicit in your marketing. “Discover anywhere. Decide with us.”
The Bigger Picture
Universal Commerce Protocol represents a fundamental shift in commerce infrastructure.
For commodity retail, it’s pure efficiency gain — faster, smoother, automated transactions.
For luxury retail, it’s a strategic inflection point — a moment to double down on what makes high-touch retail special.
The retailers who thrive will be those who:
- Embrace AI-mediated discovery (visibility)
- Maintain human expertise for decisions (conversion)
- Build seamless handoffs between agents and experts (experience)
This isn’t about choosing AI or human. It’s about integrating both, each doing what they do best.
How Immerss Fits
At Immerss, we’ve built our live video commerce platform on exactly this principle: technology that enhances human connection, not replaces it.
In the UCP era, our platform helps jewelry retailers:
Be Discoverable: Clean product data and integrations that work with agent-mediated discovery
Convert High-Value Sales: Live video consultations with jewelry experts who guide decisions and build confidence
Create Seamless Journeys: Technology that connects AI-driven discovery with human-guided purchase
Build Lasting Relationships: Every consultation becomes a relationship, not just a transaction
The future of luxury retail isn’t automated commerce. It’s augmented commerce — AI efficiency combined with human expertise.
Conclusion
The Universal Commerce Protocol is here. AI agents will increasingly mediate shopping.
For luxury and jewelry retailers, this isn’t a threat — it’s an opportunity to differentiate.
Let agents handle discovery. Own the decision.
Let technology drive efficiency. Let humans provide expertise.
That’s the hybrid future. And video commerce is the bridge that makes it work.
Ready to explore how video commerce fits your UCP strategy?
The Universal Commerce Protocol documentation is available at ucp.dev. Immerss is a live video commerce platform for luxury and jewelry retailers.
