Shopify President Bets Big On AI For Holiday Season Sales

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Finkelstein underscored how AI tools, including the company’s digital assistant Sidekick, are transforming merchant autonomy and customer engagement.

  • During Q3, more than 750,000 merchants used Sidekick for the first time.
  • Shopify’s survey revealed that roughly 64% of consumers expect to use AI for shopping during the holiday season. 
  • In Q3, the e-commerce company reported a revenue of $2.8 billion and an EPS of $0.20. 

Shopify Inc. (SHOP) President Harley Finkelstein highlighted the company’s growing reliance on artificial intelligence and its expanding role in global e-commerce during the firm’s third-quarter (Q3) earnings call. 

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Finkelstein underscored how AI tools, including the company’s digital assistant Sidekick, are transforming merchant autonomy and customer engagement.

AI Drives Merchant Autonomy, Growth

Finkelstein said Sidekick, an AI-powered assistant built into Shopify’s platform, continued to see increased adoption. During Q3, more than 750,000 merchants used the tool for the first time, contributing to nearly 100 million total interactions since its launch, including $8 million worth of activity in October alone.

“This is not just about automation. This is also about autonomy.”

-Harley Finkelstein, President, Shopify. 

Shopify stock traded over 3%lower on mid-morning Tuesday. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around the stock improved to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bullish’ territory the previous day. Message volume jumped to ‘extremely high’ from ‘normal’ levels in 24 hours. 

NVDA’s Sentiment Meter and Message Volume as of 09:40 a.m. ET on Nov. 4, 2025 | Source: Stocktwits

AI Set To Shape Holiday Shopping Trends

Looking ahead to the holiday season, Finkelstein said the shopping event has evolved from a short sales burst into a full-quarter event. Shopify’s data showed that AI will be a major driver this year, as a recent survey revealed that roughly 64% of consumers expect to use AI in some capacity when shopping during the holiday period.

For Q3, the e-commerce company reported a revenue of $2.8 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of $0.20. While revenue surpassed the analysts’ consensus estimate of $2.7 billion, EPS fell short of the $0.34 estimate, according to Fiscal AI data.

Gross merchandise value (GMV) rose 32% year-on-year (YoY) to $92 billion. For the fourth quarter, the company expects revenue to grow at a mid-to-high single-digit percentage rate year-over-year. 

Shopify’s stock has gained over 56% in 2025 and 112% in the last 12 months. 

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