Amazon CEO Andy Jassy reassured investors that they need not worry about AI bots invading its online stores. Speaking after the company’s quarterly earnings call, Andy Jassy said that while few customers are buying with third-party shopping assistants, they are not finding the experience more convenient than shopping directly through retailers. The experience, Jassy says, is “still not great, nor more convenient than coming to a retailer directly.” Jassy’s comments come after the e-commerce giant blocked Meta Platforms’ popular new AI assistant, Muse on its platform. However, he did not name Muse during his speech. . Although Jassy did not name Muse during the earnings call, his remarks come amid growing competition between retailers and technology companies over AI-powered shopping.
Amazon CEO says AI shopping agents are not a threat yet
Acknowledging that Amazon reported weaker-than-expected advertising performance during its third quarter, Andy Jassy told investors that agents were not the cause. He said that consumers still prefer visiting retailers directly rather than relying on external AI assistants to find and purchase products.Other than Amazon, Meta has signed partnerships with Shopify, Walmart, and Best Buy that allows its customers to use Muse. Such tools could potentially change how consumers interact with online retailers and reduce the need to visit individual shopping websites or apps.For Amazon, this could also affect its advertising business. The company’s online store relies heavily on product listings and advertisements that customers see while browsing and searching for items. If AI agents begin handling shopping decisions outside its platform, Amazon could lose some of those customer interactions and advertising opportunities.However, Jassy said external shopping agents were no threat.Also, Amazon is developing its own shopping assistant, called Alexa for shopping. During the earnings call, Andy Jassy said more than 400 million customers had used Alexa for shopping over the past year, with customer interactions increasing 570% year over year. He also said that customers in the US who use Amazon’s shopping assistant spend 50% more per order than those who do not.
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