Morgan Stanley Explains Why Instacart Has an AI-Edge over Its Competitors

Instacart (CART), also known as Maplebear, may be gaining an early lead in online grocery shopping thanks to a new partnership with AI platform ChatGPT (PC:OPAIQ). According to Morgan Stanley (MS), Walmart (WMT) hasn't made its grocery business available on ChatGPT yet, and Amazon (AMZN) isn't on the app either. Therefore, this gives Instacart a head start by being one of the first major grocery services integrated into the platform.TipRanks Cyber Monday Sale Claim 60% off TipRanks Premium for data-backed insights and research tools you need to invest with confidence. Subscribe to TipRanks' Smart Investor Picks and see our data in action through our high-performing model portfolio - now also 60% off In addition, five-star Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak believes that we will see the rise of "agentic commerce" (AI-powered tools that help users shop more efficiently) by 2026. Interestingly, grocery and consumer packaged goods are expected to be the categories that will benefit the most from this shift. Nowak also says that this new integration shines a spotlight on Instacart's strengths, such as real-time inventory access and a delivery network, which can help ChatGPT build smarter grocery tools. However, despite the praise, the analyst has a Hold rating on the stock with a $48 per share price target. How to Order Groceries on ChatGPT To access Instacart through ChatGPT, users can begin a grocery request by simply typing "Instacart, …" into the chat. ChatGPT then helps the user shop and guides them to the Instacart app in order to complete their order and pay securely. This type of AI-assisted shopping experience could become more common as technology continues to improve. Is CART Stock a Good Buy? Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on CART stock based on 13 Buys, nine Holds, and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average CART price target of $50.75 per share implies 14.1% upside potential.