Walmart to let AI agents shop for customers; sets guardrails

Walmart is rolling out tools that will allow customers to use their own artificial intelligence tools to shop, but with built-in permissions, controls and protections.

The retail  giant is introducing three solutions designed to control the process of outside agents performing shopping tasks on behalf of Walmart and Sam’s Club customers: Agent Profiles, the Walmart Agent Gateway and terms for AI agents. A 

Agent Profiles 

Launching in the next month, Agent Profiles will let customers authorize each AI agent with a dedicated profile within their account, so they will be able to see the agent’s purchases separately from the rest of their purchases.

In addition, customers will be able to determine how they want to approve purchases. They can require approval for every purchase or provide permission for the agent to make purchases within a spending limit they set – such as $50, $100 or $200. 

Walmart says the prices that an AI agent sees are the same prices that a human would see on Walmart.com, with applicable offers and fees shown before purchase.

The first time a customer uses an agent to shop through the Walmart Agent Gateway (see details below), Walmart will automatically create an Agent Profile for that agent. Shoppers will authorize and link that Agent Profile to the account by signing into their Walmart account. Only Walmart will see this.

Customers can choose a spending limit and see purchases from every agent and delete an Agent Profile at any time.

Walmart Agent Gateway

The Walmart Agent Gateway is being designed to give agents a faster, more reliable way to shop by using an MCP (model text protocol), beginning with a beta for companies and developers. The Agent Gateway will also assist agents in finding commonly shopped items for individual customers without the agents having to share a user’s broader shopping history.

Terms for AI agents

Walmart is setting rule establishing what agents can and cannot do when shopping on behalf of a Walmart customer:

• Customers are in control, and Walmart’s returns process applies – including if an agent doesn’t act as intended.
• Customers must approve agent purchases by default, and Walmart may require additional approvals even for purchases within an agent’s spending limits.
• Agents must not take actions beyond what the shopper intends.
• Agents don’t receive customers’ payment-card information and can’t add or change a customer’s payment methods.
• Agents can only have access to the information needed for the task and allowed by the customer.
• The agent’s privacy policy applies to the information it receives. The company that provides the agent handles what a customer sharse with its app under its privacy policy. Walmart collects and processes information the agent provides in accordance with its privacy standards.
• Agents that do not follow these terms will be blocked from Walmart’s site.