Amazon has officially asked to be removed from Meta’s newly launched Muse AI agent experience, signaling a fresh escalation in the unfolding corporate and legal battles over autonomous, third-party digital shopping.
The e-commerce giant confirmed to Retail Dive that it was given no advance notice regarding Muse’s ability to access its digital storefront and navigate its marketplace. The Muse agent, which was introduced by Meta earlier this month, is designed to act on behalf of users, browsing the web and completing transactions autonomously. According to Amazon, this capability was deployed without its authorization or participation.
"We think it’s fairly straightforward that third-party applications that offer to make purchases on behalf of customers from other businesses should operate openly and respect service provider decisions about whether or not to participate," an Amazon spokesperson told Retail Dive.
The company drew parallels to established economic partnerships in other service industries to emphasize its position on digital access. "This helps ensure a safe, secure, and reliable customer experience, and it is how others operate including food delivery apps and the restaurants they take orders for, delivery services apps and the stores they shop from, and online travel agencies and the airlines they book tickets with for customers," the spokesperson added.
Meta did not immediately respond to Retail Dive’s request for comment regarding Amazon’s demand for removal. Muse facilitates transactions using Link by Stripe, a checkout framework that incorporates various consumer-protection features, including no-fee returns and limited coverage for lost or damaged goods. Despite these built-in payment safeguards, Amazon remains steadfast in its stance that marketplace operators must be permitted to regulate and authorize how automated agents interact with their proprietary digital architecture.
This friction between major technology platforms and e-commerce operators over autonomous shopping agents is rapidly intensifying. Amazon is no stranger to the legal and operational complexities surrounding agentic commerce, having previously taken aggressive legal action to protect its digital boundaries. Last year, Amazon filed a lawsuit against artificial intelligence company Perplexity after its Comet AI agent began accessing Amazon’s e-commerce site to execute purchases on behalf of users.
That legal battle remains active in the court system. The case recently saw a significant development in August, when a U.S. appeals court vacated a temporary ruling that had previously barred Perplexity’s shopping tools from accessing Amazon’s platform. As the legal boundaries of web scraping, automated browsing, and AI-driven transactions continue to be tested, the tech industry is grappling with fundamental questions regarding platform control and third-party access.
Meta and Perplexity are far from the only entities attempting to streamline shopping by allowing artificial intelligence agents to make purchases across external e-commerce ecosystems. In fact, Amazon itself has experimented with similar strategies, stepping directly into the same operational grey area that it now challenges when practiced by competitors.
Earlier this year, Amazon faced considerable backlash from various sellers and industry observers after initiating a pilot program for its AI-backed "Buy for Me" functionality. This feature allowed shoppers to view, discover, and purchase products from external merchants and independent sellers who do not ordinarily list or sell their merchandise directly through Amazon. Under that pilot, Amazon finalized the transaction within its own platform on behalf of the buyer, effectively bridging the gap between external storefronts and its internal marketplace.
That move drew criticism from businesses that took issue with Amazon’s approach. Specifically, external sellers objected to the fact that Amazon proactively incorporated seller listings found across the broader internet without seeking their express, prior permission. Instead of an opt-in model, Amazon implemented an opt-out framework, leaving affected businesses with the burden of discovering their inclusion and subsequently submitting an email request to be removed from the program. Amazon later confirmed to Retail Dive that external sellers must explicitly email the company if they wish to opt out of the functionality.
The striking similarities between Amazon’s own "Buy for Me" pilot and the agentic shopping capabilities deployed by companies like Meta and Perplexity highlight a broader industry-wide tension. As artificial intelligence transforms how consumers discover, navigate, and purchase goods online, the dividing lines between open web access, platform autonomy, and digital property rights are becoming increasingly contentious.
With autonomous shopping agents continuing to evolve and expand their capabilities across the digital landscape, both retail platforms and AI developers are being forced to navigate a complex regulatory and operational frontier. For now, Amazon’s insistence on being removed from Meta’s Muse highlights a broader, unresolved struggle over who ultimately controls the digital point of sale when artificial intelligence steps in to shop on the consumer’s behalf.