Amazon blocks Perplexity's AI agent in court

With agentic e-commerce, AI is gradually redefining how we browse and shop online, to the point that assistants capable of searching for a product, comparing prices, and completing a purchase on behalf of the user are beginning to emerge.

However, these new uses sometimes clash with the established rules of online shopping platforms. This is precisely what is at stake today between Amazon and Perplexity.

After several months of tension, a US federal court has just ruled in favor, at least temporarily. A decision that could weigh on the future of assistants capable of interacting directly with e-commerce sites…

A court injunction against the Comet agent…

According to information from Bloomberg, a federal judge in San Francisco granted Amazon a temporary injunction targeting the shopping agent integrated into Perplexity's Comet browser. This ruling prohibits the startup from accessing the group's website to make automated purchases on behalf of users. Indeed, the tool developed by Perplexity allows users to ask an AI to search for a product on Amazon and then complete the purchase. Specifically, the agent used the user's credentials to access their account and interact with the platform. The court believes that Amazon presented evidence showing that the Comet browser accessed its site "without authorization," even when instructed by the user. According to Judge Maxine Chesney, the online marketplace has sufficiently strong arguments to hope to prevail in the proceedings. This decision also requires Perplexity to cease all access to password-protected areas of Amazon's website and to delete the data it retrieved from the platform for the duration of the litigation, with a one-week appeal period. Amazon denounces security and advertising risks. For its part, Amazon initiated these legal proceedings last November. In its complaint, the company accuses Perplexity of attempting to conceal the operation of its agents so that they could continue to analyze the site and interact with its systems. The group specifically highlights risks related to account security. According to Amazon, these automated agents can operate within protected systems, including areas requiring a password. AI-generated interactions could also distort ad impressions and disrupt advertiser billing, and Amazon explains that it has had to adapt its systems to detect and filter this automated traffic. Faced with these accusations, Perplexity denounces a pressure tactic designed to stifle innovation, and the startup asserts its desire to defend internet users' right to choose the AI they wish to use. Between platforms seeking to control access to their services and new players aiming to automate the online experience, the confrontation has likely only just begun…