Amazon Buy for Me AI Agent Controversy: Small Brands Decry 'Forced Dropshipping'

Amazon's push into the future of shopping has hit a major ethical wall. The e-commerce giant's experimental Buy for Me AI agent is facing fierce backlash from independent retailers who say they never consented to have their products listed on the platform. What Amazon calls a 'helpful feature' for consumers is being labeled as exploitative by small business owners who feel they're being forced into a business model they explicitly tried to avoid.

The Scale of the Amazon Buy for Me AI Agent Controversy

The program, part of Amazon's Shop Direct initiative, uses AI to scrape pricing and stock data from third-party websites. Since its launch, the number of available products has surged from 65,000 to over 500,000. When a customer clicks the 'Buy for Me' button, Amazon's AI acts as a proxy, purchasing the item directly from the retailer's site on the shopper's behalf.

However, the automation is far from perfect. Hitchcock Paper, a Virginia-based shop, reported receiving orders for products they don't even carry. Other retailers on Shopify and Squarespace argue that this turns them into 'unwilling dropshippers' for Amazon, stripping them of their ability to control their brand experience and inventory.

A Clash of Data Sovereignty and AI Ambition

The controversy highlights a glaring irony in Big Tech's data policies. In November 2025, Amazon sued the AI startup Perplexity, alleging that its agents 'concealed' themselves to scrape Amazon's own site without approval. Now, small retailers are accusing Amazon of using those exact same 'bully tactics' against them.

While Amazon claims that businesses can 'opt out at any time' by emailing a specific address, the burden of discovery and action rests entirely on the small business owners. As AI agents like Rufus become more capable, the boundary between public data and private commerce is becoming increasingly blurred.