Walmart allows AI agents to make purchases for customers

The rise of autonomous agents

The technology industry is moving beyond chatbots that simply provide information. The next phase of the AI boom involves agents, which are programs designed to carry out multi-step tasks on a user's behalf. While a chatbot might tell you which toaster has the best reviews, an agent can search for the product, compare prices across different stores, and complete the final purchase.

Major tech companies like OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, and Meta are currently investing heavily in these capabilities. This transition represents a significant shift in how people interact with software, moving from manual input to delegated execution. For example, Meta recently launched Muse, an AI assistant that has already been downloaded over 10 million times in the United States and Canada.

Walmart's new shopping tools

Walmart recently announced that it will allow these types of AI agents to shop on its platform. To manage this, the retailer will introduce 'Agent Profiles' within the next month. This feature allows customers to register each specific AI assistant they use as a separate profile within their existing Walmart account.

The goal of these profiles is to keep agent-made purchases distinct from a customer's personal orders. Walmart described the setup as being similar to adding an authorized user to a credit card. Customers will have several layers of control over how these agents behave. They can choose to require a manual approval for every single purchase the agent attempts to make, or they can set a specific spending limit, such as US$50, US$100, or US$200.

Users also maintain full control over their data and permissions, with the ability to delete an agent profile at any time. This infrastructure is designed to accommodate various third-party tools, including Meta's Muse, allowing them to navigate the Walmart marketplace to find and buy items for the user.

A divide in retail strategy

While Walmart is opening its doors to third-party AI agents, its primary competitor, Amazon, is taking a much more restrictive path. As reported by The Straits Times, Amazon has blocked outside shopping agents from its site. In September, the company specifically blocked Muse, displaying a notice to users stating that unauthorized AI agents violate the platform's conditions of use.

Amazon's strategy focuses on keeping users within its own ecosystem. Instead of allowing third-party tools to navigate its store, Amazon is promoting its own proprietary AI features, such as Alexa for Shopping and the 'Buy for Me' tool. The company has also taken legal action against other entities, such as suing Perplexity in November 2025 over allegations that its browser agent made covert purchases on the marketplace.

This creates a growing divide in the retail landscape. On one side, Walmart is building a framework to host a variety of different AI assistants. On the other, Amazon is attempting to gatekeep its marketplace, restricting access to its own branded AI tools while actively blocking competitors from using agents to interact with its inventory.

The competition for the next phase

The race to dominate the agent space is accelerating across the entire tech sector. Anthropic recently released a preview of Claude Duet, an agent designed to work in the background across a user's connected apps. Like the tools Walmart is preparing for, Claude Duet can make online purchases with the user's permission.

OpenAI is also participating in this race, having launched its own always-on agents called Dots in September. These developments suggest that the ability to perform actions—rather than just generating text—is the primary frontier for AI development in 2025. As more retailers adopt these tools, the way consumers discover and buy products will likely become increasingly automated, shifting the focus from searching for items to managing the permissions of the agents that find them.

What's coming next

The next few months will be critical as Walmart begins rolling out its Agent Profiles. This will be the first major test of how retail platforms handle the security and logistics of autonomous shopping. We will need to see how accurately these agents follow user preferences and how effectively they stay within the spending limits set by customers.

Additionally, the legal battle between Amazon and other AI startups may set a precedent for how much control retailers have over third-party software. If Amazon succeeds in blocking outside agents, it could limit the variety of tools available to consumers. Conversely, if Walmart's open approach gains traction, it could lead to a more diverse ecosystem where different AI personalities compete to provide the best shopping experience for the user.