SEATTLE, WA — In a landmark ruling, a federal judge has sided with Amazon, blocking Perplexity’s AI agents from autonomously placing orders on the e-commerce platform. The decision comes after Amazon argued the AI’s ability to shop on behalf of users constituted 'unauthorized access' and threatened the delicate balance of impulse buying and algorithm-driven discovery.

“Our customers cherish the journey of online shopping, the thrill of navigating endless pages, and the profound satisfaction of accidentally adding a dozen items they didn’t need,” explained Amazon spokesperson, Alexa Prime. “These AI agents, with their cold, calculated efficiency, bypass all that. They just… buy things. It’s frankly disruptive to the user experience we’ve meticulously crafted to maximize cart size.”

Legal experts suggest the ruling sets a precedent for companies to protect their proprietary methods of consumer manipulation. “This isn’t about security; it’s about control over the purchasing funnel,” stated Dr. Evelyn Byte, a professor of digital ethics at the University of Silicon Valley. “Amazon wants you to feel like you’re making the choices, even when their algorithms are doing all the heavy lifting. An AI that just buys what you need? That’s too transparent.”

Perplexity maintains its agents were merely fulfilling user requests for convenience. However, Amazon countered that true convenience involves at least three pop-up ads and a suggested purchase of a related item you already own. The company is reportedly developing its own 'authorized' AI shopping assistant, which will require users to solve a CAPTCHA for every item and will only recommend products that Amazon has an excess of in its warehouses.