A San Francisco federal judge issued a preliminary injunction on Monday preventing Perplexity from utilizing its Comet browser’s AI agent to enter password-secured areas of Amazon’s website for customer shopping purposes.

This ruling represents a significant early development in agentic commerce, an emerging technology sector where artificial intelligence assistants browse websites, evaluate products, and make purchases for users. The decision underscores a central issue facing this new industry: determining who has authority over digital access when AI agents interact with online retailers.

Senior U.S. District Judge Maxine Chesney determined in her ruling that Amazon would likely prevail in its allegations that Perplexity breached both the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and
California’s computer fraud law.

The judge made an important legal distinction, concluding that while Comet accesses Amazon accounts “with the Amazon user’s permission,” it does so “without authorization by Amazon.”

Perplexity had maintained in its legal response that Amazon’s primary concern wasn’t cybersecurity but rather eliminating competition to Amazon’s proprietary AI shopping technologies. The San Francisco startup asserted that the e-commerce giant’s true motivation for legal action was protecting advertising revenue, since AI agents allow users to bypass advertisements typically displayed to human shoppers.

Amazon’s lawsuit alleged that Perplexity intentionally masked Comet’s AI agent to appear as a standard Google Chrome browser session, choosing concealment over transparent identification.

According to Amazon, the company issued at least five warnings to Perplexity beginning in November 2024, demanding cessation of the practice. Amazon then deployed a technical block against Comet’s access in August 2025, only to see Perplexity release an updated version within a day that circumvented the restriction.

“The preliminary injunction will prevent Perplexity’s unauthorized access to the Amazon store and is an important step in maintaining a trusted shopping experience for Amazon customers. We look forward to continuing to make our case in court,” an Amazon spokesperson stated on Tuesday.

Perplexity has yet to release a public statement regarding the preliminary injunction.

Previously, the company characterized the lawsuit as “a bully tactic” and maintained that consumers should have freedom to choose any AI assistant for online shopping. In a November blog post, the company argued that Amazon should embrace agentic shopping technology because it generates increased transactions and improves customer
satisfaction.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy has recognized that agentic commerce “has a chance to be really good for e-commerce” while noting that current agents lack sufficient capability in personalization and pricing accuracy. Amazon operates its own AI shopping features, including Rufus and Buy For Me.

Monday’s ruling includes a seven-day stay of the injunction, providing Perplexity an opportunity to petition the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals for a hold pending appeal.

The judge rejected Perplexity’s request for a $1 billion bond, which the company had sought based on its market valuation and Comet investment. Judge Chesney reasoned that the injunction doesn’t jeopardize Perplexity’s entire operation, as Comet remains functional on all other websites.

This case marks one of the first legal battles testing the boundaries of AI-powered shopping technology. As artificial intelligence continues advancing, similar conflicts may emerge between technology companies developing autonomous shopping agents and retailers seeking to control how their platforms are accessed and used.

The outcome could establish important precedents for how AI agents interact with commercial websites and whether companies can legally prevent automated systems from accessing their platforms, even when users authorize such access. The distinction between user permission and platform authorization may become increasingly significant as agentic commerce technology develops and gains wider adoption among consumers seeking more efficient online shopping experiences.