Key Takeaways
- Amazon has issued a cease and desist letter to Perplexity AI, asserting that its AI agent, Comet, violated terms of service by making unauthorized purchases on Amazon’s platform.
- Perplexity AI denies wrongdoing, viewing Amazon’s action as a bullying tactic to stifle competition in the AI browsing and shopping sector.
- Amazon claims Perplexity’s agent misrepresented itself, logged into user accounts without proper authentication, and negatively impacted the customer experience by disrupting personalization, delivery estimates, and pricing.
- Perplexity counters that its agent operates with the same rights as human users and does not scrape or train on Amazon’s data, accusing Amazon of attempting to limit user rights to boost advertising revenue.
- The dispute highlights the evolving landscape of AI in e-commerce and the potential conflicts arising from AI agents interacting with online platforms.
Amazon Takes Action Against Perplexity AI Over Purchasing Practices
Amazon has formally requested that AI company Perplexity AI cease its artificial intelligence agent from making purchases on its e-commerce platform. Sources familiar with the matter reported that Amazon sent a cease and desist letter on Friday, alleging that Perplexity’s browser agent, Comet, violated the online giant’s terms of service. The core of Amazon’s accusation centers on Perplexity’s agent allegedly making purchases without clearly disclosing that it was acting on behalf of a user.
Perplexity AI, a company currently valued at approximately $20 billion, has contested these claims. The company has refuted any wrongdoing, characterizing Amazon’s move as a bullying tactic. Perplexity suggests that Amazon is employing these measures to suppress competition within the rapidly advancing market for AI-powered browsing and shopping tools.
Amazon’s Allegations of Service Violations
Perplexity launched its Comet browser in July of this year. This tool is designed to perform various functions, including researching and, as in this instance, purchasing products on behalf of users.
However, Amazon’s complaint, as detailed by external reports, asserts that Perplexity’s agent failed to adequately identify itself during its operations. In some instances, the AI reportedly logged directly into users’ Amazon accounts, mimicking a standard Chrome browser. Amazon contends that this behavior degraded the customer experience, by bypassing its personalization systems and introducing inaccuracies into delivery estimates and pricing data.
Amazon’s terms and conditions for its online store strictly prohibit the use of bots or any automated tools for data scraping or making purchases. These rules are in place to maintain the integrity of the shopping environment and ensure a consistent customer experience.
Lara Hendrickson, a spokesperson for Amazon, stated that We think it’s fairly straightforward that third-party applications that offer to make purchases on behalf of customers should operate openly and respect service provider decisions. She further indicated that Amazon has been requesting Perplexity to remove Amazon from the Comet experience, particularly in light of the degraded shopping and customer service experience it provides.
Perplexity AI’s Defense and Perspective
In response to Amazon’s letter, Perplexity drafted a blog post asserting that Amazon is attempting to eliminate user rights primarily to safeguard its substantial advertising revenue. The company maintains that its Comet browser does not train on or scrape data from Amazon’s website.
Aravind Srinivas, the CEO of Perplexity, has refuted Amazon’s characterization of the situation. He expressed the belief that AI agents should possess the same rights and responsibilities as human users. Srinivas added, it’s not Amazon’s job to survey who is shopping on behalf of whom.
Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, acknowledged the complexities surrounding AI shopping agents during a recent earnings call. He noted that many current AI shopping assistants offer not good customer experiences, often due to limited personalization and unreliable fulfillment data. Nevertheless, Jassy hinted at the possibility of future collaborations with third-party developers, stating, “I do think we will find ways to collaborate.”
It is worth noting that Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, is an investor in Perplexity AI, adding another layer to the dynamic.
Competition and Platform Control in the Age of AI
Amazon’s objections to Perplexity’s practices emerge as the e-commerce giant is actively developing its own suite of AI-driven shopping tools. Earlier this year, Amazon introduced Buy For Me, a feature allowing users to purchase items from brand websites directly within the Amazon app. Additionally, Rufus, another AI assistant, was launched to recommend products and add them to a user’s cart.
More recently, Amazon debuted Help Me Decide, an AI feature designed to assist hesitant shoppers in making purchasing decisions more efficiently.
Industry observers interpret Amazon’s actions against Perplexity as a strategic move to protect its digital ecosystem and its lucrative advertising business. This business generates billions of dollars annually through the sale of sponsored product placements within search results on its platform.
Expert Summary
The conflict between Amazon and Perplexity AI highlights the growing influence of AI in e-commerce and the challenges of integrating AI agents with existing online platforms. Amazon’s concerns about user experience and terms of service violations are met with Perplexity’s stance on user rights and fair competition. This dispute underscores the evolving regulatory and competitive landscape for AI-powered shopping tools.