American Express launches framework to verify AI shopping agent purchases

American Express has published a new framework that can help card issuers verify purchases made by artificial intelligence (AI)-powered shopping agents. The payments company released its Intent Intelligence framework on Tuesday, Oct. 13.

With the system, Amex describes how to record a shopper’s purchase instructions before AI agents can buy products or services on the shopper’s behalf. Card issuers can use those records to help detect fraud, approve payments and resolve disputes when something goes awry.

For retailers, it could help determine whether an ordering mistake originated with an AI agent. American Express confirmed to Digital Commerce 360 that Intent Intelligence has no live integrations yet.

The company said publishing the framework is intended to let other payment and technology providers adopt its approach, rather than introduce new capabilities.

“Providing authorized purchase intent before an agent transacts can give issuers greater confidence that an agent is acting as a customer intended, while also helping issuers proactively manage risk and reduce the chance of costly disputes across the payments ecosystem,” Luke Gebb, head of global innovation at American Express, said in the company’s announcement.

The move comes as payment companies develop more tools for agentic commerce. With these tools, AI agents can search for products, compare prices and even complete purchases on consumers’ behalf. Yet consumers remain cautious about giving AI control over their purchases. In a survey of 1,000 U. S.

adults released in August, payments company NMI found that 58% worried that an AI shopping agent could buy the wrong item, size, color or brand. Another 60% were concerned that an agent could spend more than they intended.

Although American Express introduced Intent Intelligence in April, the latest publication makes its technical framework available for other companies to build upon. The company said the goal is to “help advance a common industry approach for intent in agentic commerce.”

What the new American Express framework means for retailers For retailers, AI purchasing mistakes present a new challenge. A merchant could fulfill an order exactly as received, only to face a dispute because the agent bought something the shopper never requested. That’s where a record of the shopper’s original instructions, or “purchase intent,” could help.

By documenting what the customer approved, the framework offers evidence of whether the agent actually followed those instructions. Intent Intelligence is one of five services American Express introduced in April through its Agentic Commerce Experiences (ACE) developer kit.

The company said the framework “differs from current implementations” in that it shares a customer’s authorized purchase intent to the issuer “earlier in the transaction lifecycle — before an agent executes a purchase.” American Express told Digital Commerce 360 that Intent Intelligence supports several types of purchase controls.

Shoppers can set maximum spending amounts, expiration dates and merchant preferences. They can also specify when an agent should buy, such as when a product returns to stock or on Cyber Monday. The framework also supports more complex purchases.

For example, a shopper could authorize an agent to buy flight insurance only if it successfully purchases the accompanying tickets. It can also accommodate multiple transactions, such as buying shoes and socks from different retailers.

How American Express’ Intent Intelligence framework works American Express broke down the process into four steps: “Create and confirm intent”: American Express’ Create Intent API captures what the shopper wants to buy, where the agent can shop and how much it can spend.

The shopper then verifies their identity and approves the instructions the agent captured. “Establish proof of intent”: The system generates an Intent ID to identify the approved instructions, along with a Proof of Intent Token representing key purchase limits.

“Scope the payment credential”: The agent can use the token to obtain a secure digital payment credential tied to the instructions. It then uses that credential at checkout instead of the shopper’s actual card number. “Apply intent throughout the transaction”: The ID and token can help check whether a purchase request matches what the shopper authorized.

American Express said the records can also support “fraud prevention, authorization decisioning and dispute resolution.” Intent Intelligence is designed to work across different agentic commerce models, regardless of who collects the shopper’s instructions, the company said.

Depending on how an agent handles payments, it could send those instructions directly to a card issuer. Alternatively, a digital wallet provider or another intermed