Amazon Battles Perplexity Over AI Shopping Bot Access in Legal Dispute That Could Shape E-Commerce Future
Summary
Amazon demands Perplexity remove its Comet AI shopping bot from the platform, sparking a legal battle that could determine whether AI agents must identify themselves when browsing e-commerce sites and how companies control automated access to protect their advertising revenue.
Key Points
- Amazon sends cease-and-desist letter to Perplexity demanding removal of its Comet AI shopping assistant from Amazon's platform for violating terms of service by not identifying itself as an automated agent
- Perplexity argues its AI agent has same permissions as human users and claims Amazon wants to block third-party shopping bots to protect its own advertising revenue and product placement business
- The dispute sets precedent for how AI agents will interact with e-commerce platforms, with Amazon requiring bots to identify themselves and allowing websites to decide whether to permit automated access