As technology companies race to reshape online shopping with artificial intelligence, Amazon.com Inc is now offering the technology behind its Alexa for Shopping assistant to outside retailers, betting merchants will prefer building branded AI tools on their own platforms rather than relying on third-party intermediaries such as OpenAI or Google.
Amazon says it has begun offering its in-house artificial intelligence shopping technology to other retailers through its cloud unit, as the company seeks to expand its role in AI-powered e-commerce.
The new service, offered through Amazon Web Services, packages the “architecture, starter code and learnings” behind Amazon’s Alexa for Shopping assistant, allowing retailers to build branded AI shopping tools for their own websites and catalogs, the company said in a blog post.
Amazon said retailers could deploy the tools “in as little as 60 days.”
The move extends Amazon’s long-standing strategy of commercializing technology first developed for internal use. The company previously followed a similar approach with cloud computing, cashier-less checkout systems, warehousing and supply chain software.
Earlier this month, Amazon rebranded its e-commerce chatbot Rufus as Alexa for Shopping and made the assistant the default experience for search queries on its retail platform.
Amazon said Kate Spade had already adopted the service to launch a gifting assistant, while additional retailers were “currently in testing.”
Technology companies across the AI sector are increasingly targeting shopping applications. OpenAI, Google and Perplexity have all introduced AI shopping tools and research agents, though some efforts have faced technical issues and difficulties onboarding retailers.
Retailers including Walmart, Target, Etsy, Gap and eBay have pursued a mix of in-house AI development and partnerships with external providers such as OpenAI and Google.
Amazon has largely avoided integrating rival AI platforms into its shopping ecosystem, focusing instead on internally developed tools such as Alexa for Shopping. The company has also restricted external AI agents from scraping its retail site, while separately developing a feature called “Buy for Me” that can complete purchases on third-party websites on behalf of users.
In Wednesday’s post, Amazon argued retailers should retain direct control over customer interactions rather than depend on outside AI providers.
“Retailers already possess deep vertical knowledge about their products, customers, and categories that no general-purpose AI can match,” the company said.
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Faustine Ngila is the AI Editor at Impact Newswire, based in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an award-winning journalist specializing in artificial intelligence, blockchain, and emerging technologies.
He previously worked as a global technology reporter at Quartz in New York and Digital Frontier in London, where he covered innovation, startups, and the global digital economy.
With years of experience reporting on cutting-edge technologies, Faustine focuses on AI developments, industry trends, and the impact of technology on society.
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