<p>The application of artificial intelligence (AI) in the e-commerce platform supply chain has profoundly affected the decision-making and sales format selection of supply chain members. This study examines the impact of AI on the e-commerce platform supply chain and analyzes how platform’s commission rate and AI application cost jointly affect equilibrium sales formats. We initially use game theory method to establish a benchmark model without AI, and then construct two sales models that the application of AI will eliminate or reduce consumer returns. Then, we compare the sales models using AI with the benchmark model, analyze the impact of applying AI on optimal decision-making, profit, and equilibrium sales formats. Results indicate that the profitability of platform applying AI primarily depends on its application cost, however, the application of AI technology is consistently profitable for the supplier in the agency sale format. Moreover, when the platform’s commission rate is low, no equilibrium format exists. With moderate to high commission rates, the agency sale format reaches the equilibrium. At very high or extremely high commission rates, the resale format becomes the equilibrium. Lastly, the evolution and development of AI will benefit supply chain members in the resale format, while may not necessarily bring higher platform’s profit in the agency sale format. Under extension to the case with two suppliers, similar results of sales format selection demonstrate robustness of our proposed model.</p>