Amazon Web Services Leader Outlines Risks of Agentic Commerce

Rishi Katdare, a senior leader at Amazon Web Services, has outlined the emergence of agentic commerce, a system where individuals and enterprises delegate purchasing decisions to AI software agents. While Katdare notes that these agents can increase overall sales and lower servicing costs, he warns they may simultaneously weaken business economics.

Katdare argues that autonomous agents could bypass traditional advertising revenue and introduce new intermediary fees, effectively shifting influence over customer choice away from the service provider. To mitigate these risks, he advocates for a strategic approach to bot monetization that separates agent-driven sales from organic growth.

He urges business leaders to conduct controlled pilots to measure the actual contribution of AI agents after accounting for fees and exception costs. Katdare emphasizes that companies must integrate risk and responsibility into their business cases, establishing clear governance regarding fraud, refunds, and the verification of machine authority before expanding autonomous commerce channels.