Large language model-based search is emerging as a significant touchpoint in India's consumer purchase journey, reaching 22% of purchases studied and increasingly influencing which brands consumers ultimately choose, according to new research from Boston Consulting Group (BCG).
The study, titled AI Is Rewriting the Rules of the Consumer Journey, examines consumer behaviour across China, India, Japan and South Korea. It draws on responses from nearly 5,500 consumers across the four markets and covers 16 product and service categories.
India recorded the highest LLM search reach among the markets studied. At 22%, it was more than four times the 5% reported for Japan. Social media, however, continues to have the widest reach in India, appearing in 29% of purchase journeys.
BCG distinguishes between "reach", the share of purchase journeys in which consumers interact with a particular touchpoint, and "influence", the extent to which that touchpoint shapes the brand ultimately selected.
This distinction highlights a larger role for LLM search than its reach alone suggests. Among Indian consumers who used LLM search during their purchase journey, 65% said it influenced their final brand choice. This was comparable to, and marginally above, social media at 64% among consumers who used that channel.
Across the four Asian markets, LLM search appeared in 12% of purchase journeys but influenced brand choice among 64% of consumers who used it. Its influence remained between 52% and 68% across the markets despite substantial differences in adoption.
The study also found that in more than half of LLM-assisted purchase journeys, consumers considered brands they otherwise may not have discovered. BCG linked this behaviour to the ability of AI systems to synthesise information, compare alternatives and generate recommendations based on user queries.
The findings come as consumer discovery becomes increasingly distributed across social media, traditional internet research, brand websites and AI-powered interfaces. In India, BCG also pointed to the expansion of the creator economy and closer integration between social platforms and e-commerce as factors bringing product discovery and transactions closer together.
The report further identifies agentic commerce as an emerging development, where AI systems could move beyond recommending products to assisting with or completing transactions. According to BCG, 28% of Asia-Pacific CMOs surveyed ranked agentic commerce among their top three priorities.
For marketers, the report suggests that measuring a channel only by audience reach may provide an incomplete picture as AI search becomes more prominent in product research. It also points to growing attention around Generative Engine Optimisation, structured brand information and visibility across sources that LLMs use to formulate responses.
Disclaimer: This a press-release. For more information, visit bcg.com. Download the publication here: How LLM Search Shapes Asian Consumer Buying in 2026 | BCG
Related Articles
