Walmart Opens Platform to Third-Party AI Shopping Agents as Anthropic Debuts Claude Duet

Walmart on Wednesday launched two new tools enabling third-party AI agents to shop and complete purchases on behalf of customers, positioning the retailer as an open platform for agentic commerce in direct contrast to rival Amazon, which has moved to block outside AI agents from its marketplace. The announcement came on the same day Anthropic released a preview of Claude Duet, a background AI agent that can make online purchases with user approval, while OpenAI had already launched its own always-on agents, called Dots, last month.

The first tool, called Agent Profiles, will roll out within the next month and lets customers register each AI assistant they use, track its purchases separately, set spending limits, and require approval before any transaction. The second, the Walmart Agent Gateway, is a platform allowing assistants such as OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google's Gemini, and Meta's Muse to connect directly with Walmart and Sam's Club systems to search products and complete purchases. Walmart CEO John Furner announced both features, stressing that customers can revoke agent access at any time and that AI agents will be barred from accessing payment card data. The company compared the arrangement to adding an authorized user to a credit card.

The move highlights a widening strategic divide in retail over agentic shopping. Amazon has sought to limit third-party AI agents, including Meta's Muse, from accessing its platform, while Walmart is welcoming them with dedicated infrastructure. Retailers broadly expect agentic shopping to accelerate as consumers grow more comfortable delegating purchases to AI systems.