Two of the biggest names in ecommerce are taking noticeably different approaches to AI shopping agents, and the contrast is useful to understand whether you run a brand, a network, or a publisher site. MarketWatch recently framed the two as starkly different moves, and the wider coverage of both companies' recent results shows what each one is building and why. 

This post walks through the two approaches, where the legal picture stands, and what it could mean for affiliates, brands, and publishers. 

Two Approaches to the Same Question 

The shared question is simple: when a shopper asks an AI assistant to find or buy something, where should that purchase happen? 

Amazon's answer is to keep it inside its own ecosystem. According to 24/7 Wall St's summary of second quarter results, more than 350 million customers used Alexa for Shopping over the last 12 months, and the tool now includes price alerts and auto buy. Amazon has also restricted outside agents from its site. Fast Company reported that Amazon blocks AI agents from crawling its website, arguing that agents may not provide the best price, delivery method, or recommendations that Amazon itself can offer. 

Shopify's answer is to open the doors. The same 24/7 Wall St summary reports that every Shopify merchant is ready for the Universal Commerce Protocol, which lets AI agents build carts and check out through Shopify, and that Shopify's Catalog now lists more than 1 billion products. Searches powered by the Catalog converted at twice the rate of searches built on scraped data. Shopify has also reported that AI attributed orders on its platform grew 11x between January 2025 and January 2026, according to this overview from Phill, which also notes that Agentic Storefronts were switched on by default for Shopify stores from late March. 

It is worth adding that these models are not entirely fixed. Forrester's analysis points to Amazon's Shop Direct feature, which lets customers buy products Amazon does not sell itself, and to Amazon's partnership with OpenAI. Both companies are still experimenting. 

Where the Legal Picture Stands 

The access question has also reached the courts. In March, a federal judge granted Amazon a preliminary injunction stopping Perplexity's Comet browser agent from shopping in password protected parts of Amazon's site. Amazon argued the agent presented itself as a regular Chrome session. Perplexity argued that the real motivation was protecting advertising revenue. 

That was not the final word. In early August, a three judge panel of the Ninth Circuit vacated the injunction, reasoning that when an agent shops on someone's behalf, it is the user who accesses Amazon, not the agent's maker. The panel was clear that its ruling was narrow and does not establish a new legal framework for agentic AI. The underlying case returns to the district court, and Amazon has said it disagrees with the decision and is evaluating its next steps. In short, the rules are still being written. 

Why This Matters for the Industry 

Consumer behavior is moving alongside all of this. Adyen's 2026 Retail Report found that 35% of US shoppers now use AI assistants for shopping, up from 12% a year earlier. Forrester's February 2026 Consumer Pulse Survey found ChatGPT was the third most used tool for product search among US and UK adults, behind Google and Amazon. 

For affiliates, brands, and publishers, a few practical points follow from the reporting: 

Plan for more than one model. Amazon and Shopify are pursuing different strategies at the same time, and the legal picture has not settled. Building around a single assumption about how agents will shop would be premature. 

Keep product information clear and consistent. Fast Company reports that Shopify has worked with major agents so products carry a citation from the brand's own website. Accurate, well structured product details and content help agents and shoppers alike, whichever platform they use. 

Ask about attribution. None of the reporting above settles how referrals and commissions will be tracked when an agent completes a purchase. That makes it a good question to raise with partners, networks, and platforms now. 

Follow the court developments. The Ninth Circuit ruling answered one narrow question. Further proceedings and any appeal could shape how platforms treat agents acting for users. 

What We're Watching Next 

In a fast moving space, these are our predictions: 

The legal question to stay open well into 2027:  The Ninth Circuit's ruling was deliberately narrow, the underlying case has gone back to the district court, and Amazon has said it is weighing its options. Until there is more clarity, I would expect platforms to keep setting their own access rules agent by agent. 

Open and closed models will blur over time. Forrester's analysis shows Amazon already experimenting with Shop Direct and a partnership with OpenAI, while Shopify is working with the major agents. Neither company looks locked into a single position, so a mix of approaches seems more likely than a clean winner. 

Attribution to become the practical conversation for affiliates. If an agent completes more of the journey, partners will want to know how referrals and commissions are tracked. Research shared at Affiliate Summit East by eMarketer and Partnerize found that fewer than one in ten brands felt their current attribution approach fully compensated publishers, so there is clearly appetite to get this right. 

Specific, hands on content will keep earning its place. In the AI search session at Affiliate Summit East, Profound's data showed a niche review site that tests products physically being cited more often than the brand it reviews. If shoppers rely on agents for research, I would expect that kind of original, detailed content to stay valuable to both agents and people. 

With 35% of US shoppers already using AI assistants for shopping according to Adyen's report, this could be the first peak period with meaningful data on how agent assisted shopping behaves at scale. 

The Bottom Line 

Amazon is building shopping agents inside its own ecosystem, while Shopify is opening its catalog and checkout to outside agents. Both approaches are still evolving, and the legal framework is still being worked out. For anyone in affiliate marketing, the useful response is to stay informed, keep product data and content strong, and keep asking partners how performance will be measured as more shopping journeys happen inside AI assistants. 

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