American Express is introducing a framework designed to stop AI shopping agents from buying outside the instructions their users approved. The Intent Intelligence Framework records a customer’s purchase constraints before payment and connects that approval to the transaction, TechCrunch reports.
Amex says it has yet to see an increase in disputes caused by agentic commerce. It is building the controls ahead of wider adoption, with agents potentially buying household supplies without asking for approval on every order.
What the customer approves
The process begins with a Create Intent API. It captures purchase instructions, including a merchant, a maximum budget and product preferences. The customer then authenticates their identity and approves the intent the agent recorded.
The framework creates an Intent ID and a Proof of Intent Token containing the customer’s high-level constraints. The token obtains a secure digital payment credential for the agent to use at checkout in place of the customer’s actual card number.
Hannah Bozian, Amex’s vice president of agentic partnerships and strategy, gave TechCrunch an example of a customer requesting white Nike sneakers in size 9. If the agent instead requests Adidas shoes, Amex could block the transaction because it conflicts with the approved request.
The same records could help with fraud prevention and disputes. Amex says a log can show what a customer authorized, which agent acted and when.
Adoption and evidence are still open
The framework joins Amex’s Agentic Commerce Experiences developer toolkit, which the company launched in April. Amex is discussing implementation with partners across the payments industry and wants the framework to become an industry standard.
Amex also shared survey results with TechCrunch. In its Trendex survey, 66% of U.S. respondents said they were likely to use AI agents to research the best price, and 61% said they were likely to use them for recommendations over the next 12 months. Those questions measure interest in shopping assistance. They do not establish how many people will authorize agents to spend money.
