A US federal judge has ordered AI startup Perplexity to stop its AI agents from accessing Amazon and placing orders on behalf of users. The ruling comes after Amazon alleged that the company’s browser-based AI tools were interacting with the platform without authorization.
The order was issued by US District Judge Maxine Chesney, who said Amazon had presented “strong evidence” showing that Perplexity’s AI agents accessed user accounts on the e-commerce platform without the company’s permission.
What the court order says
The preliminary injunction prevents Perplexity from using its AI agents to access Amazon’s platform. The ruling also requires the startup to delete any data it may have collected from Amazon through these interactions.
According to the court filing, the order will take effect in seven days. This window allows Perplexity time to appeal the decision before the restrictions are enforced.
Amazon argued in its lawsuit that Perplexity’s technology bypassed restrictions on its marketplace and interacted with customer accounts without authorization. The company said such activity violated computer fraud and abuse laws.
Amazon’s allegations against Perplexity
Amazon first filed the lawsuit in November, claiming it had repeatedly asked Perplexity to stop allowing its AI agents to purchase items from its platform.
The dispute centres around Perplexity’s Comet browser, which includes an agent-based shopping feature designed to place orders on behalf of users. Amazon alleged that the tool accessed its systems without permission and interacted with user accounts.
The company also claimed that the Comet browser attempted to disguise its activity by presenting itself as Google Chrome while accessing Amazon’s platform.
Statements from both companies
Amazon said the court order will help prevent unauthorized access to its marketplace. In a statement, the company said the decision would stop Perplexity’s AI agents from interacting with its store without permission and that it plans to continue pursuing the case in court.
Perplexity, meanwhile, said it plans to challenge the ruling. The company stated that it will continue to fight for users’ ability to choose the AI tools they want to use on the internet.
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