Amazon, Perplexity, and the future of AI shopping assistants

Amazon sent a cease-and-desist letter to AI startup Perplexity, demanding it stop using its Comet browser to make purchases on behalf of users in Amazon's store, claiming the AI agent violates terms of use. Perplexity called Amazon's move "bullying" and argued AI shopping assistants give users more control over their online experience. This legal battle represents a broader conflict between established tech companies protecting their ad-based revenue models and AI startups promising automated shopping experiences.