Walmart announced on Wednesday the launch of its Agent Gateway, a new platform designed to manage transactions and support customers using AI agents. The move marks a strategic shift as the retailer embraces agentic commerce, shortly after its primary competitor, Amazon, began blocking AI agents from making purchases on behalf of online shoppers.
Unlike other online businesses, including various travel and booking sites that have blocked AI agents from their websites, Walmart is actively integrating the technology. The company previously announced a partnership with Meta’s Muse and supports integrations with AI applications such as ChatGPT and Gemini.
Walmart president and CEO John Furner discussed the expansion at the Masters of Scale Summit in San Francisco on Wednesday. The technology will support shopping across both Walmart and the company’s discount warehouse, Sam’s Club.
How the Agent Gateway works
The Agent Gateway utilizes a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, a standard originally created by Anthropic. This protocol allows approved AI agents to connect to external data sources and workflows. Through this gateway, AI agents can search Walmart’s online inventory and execute purchases on behalf of users without requiring the sharing of personal information or purchase history directly with the agent.
The company has also developed technology to distinguish between purchases made by AI agents and those made directly by customers. This includes the introduction of Agent Profiles, which will roll out next month. These profiles allow customers to authorize specific AI agents within their accounts, view agent-initiated purchases separately, and set spending limits or require approval for individual transactions.
The retailer compared these controls to adding an authorized user to a credit card, where transactions are identified and spending can be capped. Agent Profiles are created upon the first use of an agent through the gateway, and users can delete profiles at any time. This support is available to all Walmart account holders, regardless of whether they have a Walmart+ membership.
Operational terms and security
Walmart is also introducing specific terms for AI agents, outlining their operational requirements and transaction rights. The company confirmed that its standard returns process applies, even if an agent does not act as intended. This policy is designed to address consumer concerns regarding the reliability of early-stage agentic commerce.
Under the new terms, agents are prohibited from accessing customer payment information and are restricted to accessing only the data necessary for a specific task. Furthermore, agents are barred from taking actions beyond the shopper’s intent. The company stated that any agents failing to comply with these terms will be blocked from accessing the Walmart site.
