eBay restricts third-party AI agents from browsing marketplace listings
The online retailer has blocked automated tools like Meta's Muse from accessing specific data, citing a need to control how external software interacts with its platform.
By Marco Ortega ·
eBay has limited the ability of third-party artificial intelligence agents to browse its marketplace. The restriction prevents automated tools from pulling direct links, prices, and shipping details from active listings. This move marks a shift in how the platform manages external software access to its inventory.
A reader reported to The Verge that his use of Meta's Muse agent changed over the past several weeks. The agent previously curated a daily digest of watches for sale on eBay, providing links and condition notes. Recently, the tool failed to retrieve any listing information from the site. The agent informed the user that it was blocked from accessing the platform.
The Verge replicated this issue by issuing similar search requests through the same system. In some instances, the agent directed users to external websites that mirrored eBay listings rather than linking directly to the original page. This behavior suggests a deliberate filtering of direct access paths for non-authorized agents.
eBay spokesperson Sybille St. Arromand confirmed in an email that the company is integrating AI into its own discovery and personalization processes. She stated that eBay takes a selective approach to third-party access. St. Arromand noted that the company has restricted agent access in cases involving unauthorized scraping or data training.
"We have ongoing discussions with potential partners and are evaluating ways third-party agents could help new customers discover eBay's unmatched inventory," St. Arromand said. "Our focus is on preserving the trusted end-to-end experience that buyers and sellers expect from eBay." She declined to answer directly if new limits were imposed recently.
The platform's user agreement previously banned specific types of automation, such as "buy-for-me agents" and "LLM-driven bots" that place orders without human review. However, browsing capabilities remained accessible to tools like Muse until the recent changes. Meta did not provide a comment on the development.
Other major retailers handle third-party agents differently. Amazon blocks external agents from browsing or shopping entirely. Target maintains restrictions that allow browsing in some cases but block it in others. Shopify has opened its catalog of one billion listings to allow agents to purchase items on behalf of shoppers.
The integration of agents into e-commerce poses challenges for sites designed for human users. In October, The Verge found that a user could use Muse to hold product listings hostage on The RealReal by continuously adding items to a cart. The RealReal subsequently updated its bot defense systems after that reporting.
Current data indicates that agentic commerce remains a small fraction of total transactions. Uber reported fulfilling only four rides via third-party agents in the third quarter. The company also processed approximately 500 Uber Eats orders during the week of Halloween. DoorDash stated it fulfilled several hundred agent-placed orders, a small portion of its 993 million total orders from the same period.
