American Express introduces framework to check purchases made by AI agents

American Express introduced its Intent Intelligence Framework on 13 October to check purchases made by AI agents against customer instructions, as 66% of US consumers it surveyed said they were likely to use agents to research prices, TechCrunch reported.

Create Intent API records the customer’s limits

The process begins with a Create Intent API. American Express says it is designed to capture a customer’s purchase request and any conditions attached to it, including a named merchant, a maximum budget or product preferences. The way an agent collects those instructions may differ between AI models, Hannah Bozian, American Express’s VP of Agentic Partnerships and Strategy, told TechCrunch.

The customer then verifies their identity and approves the intent recorded by the agent. The framework creates an Intent ID to identify that approved request and a Proof of Intent Token containing its broad constraints. The agent uses the token to obtain a secure digital payment credential for checkout rather than handling the customer’s actual credit card number.

American Express says the ID and token could also be used later in the transaction process, including for fraud prevention and resolving disputes. Bozian described a case in which a customer asks for white Nike trainers in size 9 but the agent tries to buy Adidas shoes. Under the proposed checks, American Express could stop that purchase because it differs from the approved request.

Bozian said placing the customer’s instructions earlier in the payment process could help address mistakes before a transaction goes through. She said a consumer might in future allow an agent to reorder household staples, with price and size rather than brand or merchant setting the limits.

Framework joins the ACE Developer Toolkit

The framework is part of American Express’s Agentic Commerce Experiences, or ACE, Developer Toolkit, launched in April. The kit also includes agentic tokens containing American Express payment credentials. The company is discussing implementation of ACE with partners across the payments industry.

American Express said it had not seen an increase in disputes from agentic commerce. It said it was developing the controls ahead of wider use of agents to make purchases. The company hopes its intent framework will become a standard for such transactions.

Alongside ACE, American Express announced Amex Agent Purchase Protection. The company said in its 6 October announcement that it intends the protection to cover eligible card members and merchants against charges caused by errors from registered AI agents, subject to terms and conditions.

That announcement also said American Express was working with industry organisations and partners on common standards intended to make it easier for merchants to take part in agentic commerce across different platforms. The intent framework addresses one part of that process: carrying a customer’s approved purchasing conditions into the payment.

Amex surveys put purchase comfort at 52%

American Express’s consumer survey found that 61% of respondents said they were likely to use an AI agent for a product or service recommendation over the following 12 months. Willingness to let an agent pay varied by purchase: 52% said they were comfortable with an agent buying everyday, low-cost items, while 15% said the same for high-value items such as electronics and appliances.

The company said 62% of merchants surveyed expected agents shopping for customers to have a moderate or significant effect on their business over the next year. Among surveyed businesses, 83% viewed agentic commerce as an opportunity, but 41% reported that they were actively experimenting with or implementing it.

American Express also released a free business playbook on 6 October covering how merchants can prepare for AI-assisted shopping. It is establishing a pilot Merchant AI Advisory Council to gather merchant views as it develops its approach. The company said 86% of surveyed businesses anticipated help from payments firms and partners, at a medium level or higher, as they got ready for agentic commerce.

The consumer survey covered 2,005 US adults who reported making at least three online purchases in the preceding six months. Teneo conducted it online from 10 to 14 August. Its separate merchant survey covered 502 US business leaders responsible for payment options or online sales and digital strategy, and ran from 10 to 18 August.