Judge Bans Perplexity’s Shopping Agent From Accessing Amazon

Siding against Perplexity, a federal judge has prohibited the artificial intelligence company’s shopping agent, Comet, from accessing Amazon.

In a ruling
issued Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Maxine Chesney in the Northern District of California said Amazon was likely going to prevail with its claim that Perplexity violated a 40-year-old federal
anti-hacking law by accessing the retailer’s site without its authorization.

“Amazon has provided strong evidence that Perplexity, through its Comet browser, accesses with the
Amazon user’s permission but without authorization by Amazon, the user’s password-protected account,” Chesney wrote. “Given such evidence, the Court finds Amazon has shown a likelihood of
success on the merits.”

Chesney stayed the injunction for seven days, giving Perplexity the opportunity to appeal.

The artificial intelligence company
on Tuesday initiated an appeal to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, but hasn’t yet made substantive arguments to that court.

A Perplexity spokesperson says it “will continue to
fight for the right of internet users to choose whatever AI they want.”

The dispute between the companies dates to November 2025, when Amazon sued Perplexity for allegedly
“trespassing” into Amazon’s server. The retailer alleged that Perplexity, through the Comet browser, shopped for users and made purchases on their behalf — even after Amazon attempted to implement
technological blocks and sent Perplexity a cease-and-desist…