MercadoLibre Integrates AI Deeper: Can It Boost Conversion Rates?

MercadoLibre MELI is increasingly integrating artificial intelligence (AI) to improve its platform, and early signs show it is helping boost conversion rates and efficiency. Its AI-powered search provides more relevant results based on user behavior and preferences, making it easier for customers to find what they want and increasing the likelihood of purchase. Interactive assistants further guide users, creating a smoother shopping experience. These improvements are reflected in strong fourth-quarter 2025 performance, with items sold rising 43% and GMV growing 37%, indicating better transaction activity and conversion trends.

On the supply side, MercadoLibre is leveraging AI to help sellers improve their listings with automated suggestions, content support and smoother onboarding. Higher-quality listings make products easier to understand and trust, increasing the chances of turning browsing into purchases. At the same time, AI is playing a pivotal role in advertising, enhancing bidding algorithms and campaign performance. This has not only improved ad targeting but also driven higher returns for sellers, contributing to strong ad revenue growth and better monetization efficiency.

Beyond commerce, MercadoLibre is deploying AI to enhance customer support and fintech services, with automated assistants resolving nearly 90% of user interactions without human intervention. This reduces friction, accelerates decision-making and strengthens user engagement. Also, items sold per buyer increased 15% year over year, reflecting rising purchase frequency and reinforcing the view that AI-driven improvements are translating into stronger conversion trends.

With a large base of 121 million active buyers and strong fintech growth, the company can expand these gains further.

How MELI’s Rivals Use AI to Lift Conversions

As MELI integrates AI deeper into its ecosystem, Sea Limited SE and Shopify SHOP are also taking the help of AI to improve customer experience and drive higher conversions.

Sea Limited is using AI to make shopping more engaging and personalized, helping users discover products through content and recommendations. The company also leverages data across e-commerce, gaming and fintech to improve targeting and credit access, boosting conversions. With AI-driven logistics and loyalty programs, SE enhances delivery speed and repeat purchases, strengthening its ability to lift conversion rates across the platform.

Shopify is leveraging AI to power smarter product discovery, personalization and seamless checkout experiences. The company is advancing “agentic commerce,” enabling AI platforms to act as shopping interfaces and drive conversions. With tools like Sidekick and Shop Pay, Shopify enables merchants to sell seamlessly across platforms, helping boost engagement, increase cart value and drive higher conversion rates.

MELI’s Share Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates

MELI shares have declined 18.1% in the past three months, underperforming the Zacks Internet-Commerce industry and the Zacks Retail-Wholesale sector’s fall of 13.7% and 6.6%, respectively.

MELI’s Price Performance

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From a valuation standpoint, MELI trades at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) of 27.2X, higher than the industry’s 20.69X. The company carries a Value Score of B.

MELI’s Valuation

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The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MELI’s 2026 earnings is pegged at $54.95 per share, down by 8.5% over the past 30 days, but indicating a 39.47% year-over-year increase.

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MercadoLibre stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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