eBay has introduced a groundbreaking AI tool called Photo-to-Listing designed to simplify the product listing process for marketplace sellers. This innovative feature can automatically create product listings from a single photo, streamlining the selling experience.
Initially available on the eBay app for iOS, with plans to expand to the Android app in the near future, this tool utilizes artificial intelligence to generate key listing details. It can automatically compose a product title, description, and provide essential information such as the release date of the item. Additionally, it suggests suitable categories, subcategories, listing prices, and estimated shipping costs.
eBay’s continued efforts to incorporate AI into its platform have led to various enhancements. These include AI-generated product catalog descriptions and a tool for removing backgrounds from listing photos.
An eBay spokesperson stated, “The ‘photo-to-listing’ tool was built in-house, and the data generated from listings will be used to further train the AI model. eBay is committed to leveraging AI to simplify and transform the listing process, making it effortless and enjoyable for sellers.”
In a blog post earlier this year, Adam Ireland, head of eBay’s U.S. business, revealed eBay’s plans to launch a plugin powered by an OpenAI language model. This plugin would allow sellers to automatically generate item descriptions based on existing web content, foreshadowing the release of the photo-to-listing tool.
eBay developed this tool to address the common challenge faced by first-time sellers known as the “cold start.” New sellers often find it overwhelming to enter the extensive information required to create a competitive listing. eBay aims to eliminate this hurdle entirely by automating the listing process. As they put it, “There’s no need to work through a cold start with AI: as soon as you’re ready to sell, your listing is ready to post.”
However, some experienced eBay sellers have expressed dissatisfaction with the platform’s AI-driven direction. Online forums and subreddits frequented by sellers have been flooded with complaints about the quality of eBay’s description generator. Users have cited instances of misleading or inaccurate AI-generated text, such as an error in a listing for a Pentax SLR camera that falsely claimed it came with a lens kit.
Critics argue that eBay’s AI-generated descriptions lack clarity and conciseness and tend to be verbose even for straightforward items. They also point out that the generated text fails to mention individual item characteristics and flaws, which are critical details for potential buyers.
Concerns have also arisen regarding the photo recognition capabilities of eBay’s new AI feature, given the history of bias in computer vision algorithms.
While eBay is not alone in embracing AI to enhance its platform’s functionality and discoverability, sellers are beginning to question the wisdom of the platform’s aggressive AI strategy. Amazon, for example, is also piloting AI tools for generating product titles, descriptions, and bullet points but with stricter content regulation and a different input method.
In the race to integrate AI into e-commerce platforms, the quality and accuracy of AI-generated content will remain a critical factor in determining its success and acceptance among sellers and buyers alike.
