Facebook expands Shops to WhatsApp, Marketplace in commerce push

Facebook Inc is expanding its “Shops” feature to messaging app WhatsApp and to Facebook Marketplace, the company said on Tuesday as it announced changes to its commerce tools.

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said it would also introduce personalized ads in this shopping service.

The social media giant, which launched Shops last year as a way for people to find and buy products on Facebook and Instagram as part of its push into ecommerce, said it has about 1.2 million monthly active shops on the platform.

The company said it would in the coming months launch an artificial intelligence tool called ‘Visual Search’ so users shopping on its photo-sharing site Instagram can click on items and find similar products in Shops.