Walmart is opening a dedicated gateway for AI agents, shortly after Amazon began blocking them from buying on customers' behalf. On 21 October the retailer announced Agent Gateway built on MCP, agent profiles with spending limits, and separate terms for software that shops for people.
Key takeaways
- Agent Gateway is an MCP server in closed, invitation-only beta
- Agent Profiles are due to reach customer accounts within a month
- Spending limits for agents — Walmart cites …100 and $200
- Returns apply even when an agent acts against the customer's intent
- Agents get no card data and cannot change payment methods
A gateway instead of a browser
Today an agent shopping at Walmart signs in to the customer's account and clicks through the store like a person — a route the retailer itself calls slow and error-prone.
Agent Gateway instead offers direct access to product and fulfilment data over MCP, the protocol created by Anthropic, with no scraping?scraping: pulling content off a web page automatically, the way a human would read it in a browser, lower latency and less token usage. It connects agents through the Sparky assistant, covers Walmart and Sam's Club, and starts as an invitation-only beta for companies and developers.
An account with a limit, not a shared login
The problem is bookkeeping: agent and customer purchases land in one order history, because the agent signs in as the account holder.
Agent Profiles, due within the month, give each agent its own profile — a separate purchase list, and either approval for every transaction or a spending cap (…100 and $200 are Walmart's examples). Permissions can be switched off and the profile deleted at any time. Walmart compares it to adding a cardholder.
The diagram follows the order of steps described by Walmart. It does not show Agent Gateway's internal architecture or how an agent's identity is verified.
Terms written for machines
The agent terms move part of the risk onto the retailer: the standard returns process applies even when an agent does not act as the shopper intended. An agent must not go beyond what the customer wants, receives no card data, cannot add or change payment methods, and sees only what the task requires. Agents breaking the terms lose site access.
| Action | Status |
|---|---|
| Buying within the set cap | allowed once the profile is authorised |
| Access to the customer's card data | prohibited |
| Adding or changing a payment method | prohibited |
| Return after an agent acts against intent | standard returns process applies |
| Operating outside the terms | access to the site blocked |
Why it matters
Walmart and Amazon have chosen opposite strategies toward the same shift. Amazon treats the agent as an intruder to block, Walmart as a sales channel that must accept the retailer's rules on identity, permissions and liability. If Walmart's model takes hold, the standard for agentic commerce will not be the open web but gateways admitting only agents registered with the seller — under a spending cap, and cut off at will.
What's next
- Agent Profiles are to appear in customer accounts within a month
- The Agent Gateway beta is invitation-only and may be suspended at any time
- Walmart.com's terms of use from 21 September 2026 define an agent and bar unauthorised ones
Sources
- Walmart Corporate — Making It Possible for Agents to Shop on Behalf of Customers
- TechCrunch — While Amazon blocks AI agents, Walmart rolls out the welcome mat
- Walmart — Walmart Agent Gateway
