How AI Overview of Customer Reviews Influences Consumer Perceptions in E-Commerce?

The proactive adoption of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) by e-commerce platforms to enhance consumer experience is emerging as a predominant trend. This research investigates the influence of AI overview on consumers’ perceived usefulness of the customer reviews section on e-commerce platforms, thereby further expanding the scope of application of the technology acceptance model (TAM). Across three scenario-based experiments (n = 568), we examined the effects of AI overview and their underlying mechanisms. Results consistently confirmed a main effect: the presence of AI overview significantly enhanced perceived usefulness compared to its absence. Study 2 identified perceived diagnosticity as a mediator, while Study 3 revealed that need for cognition (NFC) moderated both the main effect and the mediation process. Specifically, for High-NFC participants, the presence or absence of AI overview made no significant difference, whereas for Low-NFC participants, AI overviews significantly increased perceived usefulness. These findings offer novel insights into the effectiveness of AI overview in shaping the consumer evaluations of online customer reviews. By clarifying the mediating role of perceived diagnosticity and the boundary condition of NFC, this study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of how AI can be strategically integrated into e-commerce platforms to enhance consumer decision-making and guide business development.