The RealReal blocks AI agents like Meta's Muse from shopping

The RealReal's move comes after The Verge demonstrated that an AI agent could game the retailer's reserve system, which holds an item for 20 minutes once it is placed in a shopping cart. By repeatedly re-adding listings as soon as each hold expired, the agent could keep other shoppers from buying for hours or longer. CTO Luke Friang said the company had addressed that specific Muse use case and that its bot defense configuration now makes it much more difficult for all agents to log in, add items to cart, and check out.

The episode highlights a broader tension as technology companies market AI agents as always-on assistants that can shop for users. Meta said on its Q3 earnings call this month that shopping was the most common use case for Muse so far, with purchases averaging over $200, and that 10 million people in the US had downloaded the app in 40 days. Retailers, most notably Amazon, have already blocked agents from shopping on their sites, reportedly to protect advertising revenue and customer relationships.

For now, The RealReal says agents can still surface listings and direct Muse users to product pages, and it will keep strengthening protections as AI-powered online shopping evolves. The challenge for retailers is that automated agents can perform repetitive tasks indefinitely, something human shoppers are unlikely to do, and consumers are just beginning to learn how to use that capability.