AI Agents Are Taking Over the Internet—And It May Get Worse for You

A new kind of internet user is emerging: AI agents that act on your behalf. Unlike simple bots, these agents can book flights, compare prices, and even request refunds—all at machine speed. Apps like OpenAI's Dots and Meta's Muse have made them popular, with Muse downloaded 5 million times in its first month. But websites designed for humans are struggling to cope. Many are blocking agents entirely, from Pizza Hut to Yelp, because they can't tell if it's a person or a machine. Amazon is even fighting a legal battle to block agents, arguing they threaten its ad business.

If agents become widespread, the internet could change drastically. Once people realize agents can negotiate prices or request refunds, customer service could be overwhelmed by bots, making it unusable for real humans. Some platforms, like Shopify, are welcoming agents with special checkout lanes, but others may redesign their sites primarily for machines. That could mean more verification steps for you—like constant captchas or even iris scans—and fewer human-friendly features. Prices might vary based on your agent, and recommendations could be influenced by hidden ads.

The promise is that agents will give you more bargaining power, but the reality might be a web that's more frustrating for people. As agents multiply, websites may neglect human visitors, leading to worse interfaces and less transparency. The internet as we know it—designed for people—could become a relic, optimized instead for the machines that now outnumber us. It's a trade-off between convenience and a web that still works for everyone.