Hajra Naz
Personal AI agents are kicking off a new wave of consumer AI. That includes agents like Meta’s Muse, Instinct, ChatGPT’s Dots, and others. These agents do more than simply respond to queries. They can actually get things done on users’ behalf. That includes booking flights, making dinner reservations, ordering groceries, and more. Users don’t need technical skills to set up something like OpenClaw or another agent on their own computer.
Still, consumers adopting these agents often run into real problems. Many websites on the receiving end of a request simply block the AI from completing its task.
Most recently, Amazon began blocking Meta’s Muse AI agent from its retail site. This means the agent can no longer browse or make purchases from Amazon’s product catalogue.
This problem isn’t limited to Amazon or Muse, though. User complaints across social media suggest agents frequently run into similar blocks elsewhere. Some blocks appear intentional, like Amazon’s approach. Others result from traditional anti-bot measures. These measures were originally designed to protect against spam and malicious activity.
What’s unclear to the average user is whether a block is accidental on the website owner’s part. This leaves users frustrated with both the service provider and the agent trying to complete their transaction.
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Several complaints have surfaced on social media recently. Users claim Muse couldn’t complete a purchase on Walmart’s retail website. NBC also reported that Walmart faced this exact problem during its own testing of the AI agent.
A Walmart spokesperson addressed this issue directly, though. These blocks weren’t intentional, according to the company. In fact, Walmart has a formal partnership with Muse. That partnership was announced at Meta’s Connect developer conference back in September. Walmart said it wants to be present wherever its customers are. That now includes availability through AI agent experiences specifically.
The actual issue Walmart customers often encounter involves something specific. The website presents a button that visitors must click to verify they’re human. If that verification process gets interrupted, the check can fail. When that happens, the agent gets booted out entirely.
This situation reveals something important about current web infrastructure. The technology used to verify humans and block spam may not suit the emerging agent-first web. As AI agents become more common, these verification systems face new challenges.
Although Walmart is at least trying to remain accessible via AI agents, other companies aren’t as enthusiastic. Some haven’t embraced this technology at all.
Read More: Can Meta’s Muse Overcome Its Growing Trust Issues?
For example, flight booking represents one major use case being positioned for AI agents. Still, many people have reported issues with airlines rejecting their agents’ requests outright.
Delta addressed this directly. The company said it’s taking steps to protect customers from unauthorized automated activity. If Delta were to open up to AI agents, it would need to prioritize “security and the customer experience in mind.”
“While Delta does not currently have a partnership or integration that enables a third-party AI agent to shop for or book Delta flights on a customer’s behalf on our digital platforms, we’re continuing to evaluate how new technology, including external AI agents, could enhance the way customers engage with Delta,” said Heena Chavda, Delta’s general manager of Global Communications.
United took a less direct approach in its response. A spokesperson pointed to specific language within the airline’s Terms of Use policy. That policy states users agree “not to use any robot, spider, other automatic device, or manual process to monitor or copy this website or the content contained therein or for any other unauthorized purpose without United’s prior written permission.” United didn’t respond to a follow-up question. Specifically, it’s unclear whether the airline is blocking personal AI agents like Muse directly.
Early adopters have voiced complaints across social media about several brands. That includes Yelp, eBay, Zillow, Pizza Hut, Adidas, and various airlines. Some believe this blocking activity has increased recently.
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A couple of users even reported that eBay suspended their accounts over agentic AI use. Another user complained that Google kicked out Instinct while it was organizing their Gmail inbox.
Despite the broader push for agents handling tasks like restaurant reservations, Yelp doesn’t permit non-human traffic on its platform. That’s true unless an agent has paid to access Yelp’s content and data. This access comes through Yelp’s data licensing program specifically. Agents trying to get a quote, join a waitlist, or book a table will likely fail. This applies unless they have a formal partnership with Yelp.
eBay clarified its own approach on this issue. The company doesn’t prohibit all third-party shopping agents from completing purchases. Instead, its policies restrict unauthorized agents and specific actions. That includes automated scraping and model training activities.
Adidas, Zillow, and Pizza Hut either didn’t respond or declined to comment by publication time.
One major company involved in this broader space is Cloudflare. The company offers websites protection from AI agents. This includes agents that might train on site data or conduct other automated activity. Some suspect Cloudflare and similar content delivery networks are currently disrupting Muse traffic.
This traces back to a change in crawler defaults made on September 15. That update allows site owners to block AI training specifically, while still allowing other types of bots. Existing sites previously set to block AI bots for security reasons got shifted automatically. They now block AI agents on any pages containing ads.
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When asked about this blocking pattern affecting personal AI agents like Muse, Cloudflare offered limited insight. The company said it didn’t have specific data to share at this time. Instead, it pointed to its free public data hub, called Cloudflare Radar. This site shows increased bot activity overall, something Cloudflare has commented on previously. Still, it doesn’t help distinguish between good bots and bad ones specifically.
Cloudflare also has a vested financial interest in managing AI traffic to websites. The company now runs a marketplace where AI bots must pay for the data they access. It recently began testing a new web browser too. This browser was built specifically for AI agents.
Given this rapidly evolving landscape, Meta’s approach seems reasonable. The company is forming specific brand partnerships for Muse access. It’s also focusing on developing new industry standards. This approach assures customers that Meta’s agent is welcome at partner sites. Any access issues would then become reportable bugs, rather than intentional blocks.
Meta also maintains a growing list of “connectors,” or partners, within the Muse app. Many of Meta’s newly announced partners haven’t appeared on this list yet. Still, given Muse’s rapid expansion, including new tools for small businesses, a bigger reorganization of this connector list likely lies ahead soon.
Read More: Meta Admits Muse’s Similarity to OpenClaw Was No Coincidence
“Turning away a personal agent means turning away the customer behind it. We’d rather work with businesses to address the underlying concerns than see them lose that customer,” Meta said in its announcement about developing a new standard. “There is a path that is good for users and good for businesses. It starts with clear norms, gives businesses more predictable control, and evolves toward a more efficient way for agents to work together.”
To address this broader problem, several industry partners have begun collaborating. That includes Meta, Walmart, Stripe, Sierra, Genesys, Rocket, NiCE, and Decagon. Together, they’re working on an open standard. This standard would dictate how AI agents communicate with businesses. The goal is separating legitimate bots acting on a user’s behalf from malicious ones. According to Meta, this protocol will focus specifically on agent-to-agent communication for online commerce purposes.
