Ecommerce confronts AI shopping agents ahead of holiday season

This coming holiday season, brands will have a new type of shopper to court: AI agents.

Cheq, a cybersecurity company that verifies AI shopping agents, says it recorded a 100x surge in agentic traffic over a 45-day period following the release of consumer AI agents like Instinct and Meta’s Muse. While agents still make up a small fraction of online shoppers, they’re growing quickly, especially among a constant drumbeat of consumer agent releases, Cheq CEO Guy Tytunovich said.

But not everyone is on board: Amazon and eBay have blocked agents to reinforce control over their ads businesses and checkout experiences.

Consumers are hesitant, too. Shoppers are now as likely to be swayed by an agent’s recommendation as by an influencer, Morning Consult finds, but few are comfortable letting AI make purchases on their behalf. This holiday season will be the first true test of which brands are best at displaying their wares in ways that agents find irresistible.