AI Revolution: Amazon’s Seller Tools Embrace Anthropic’s Claude

Amazon has introduced new AI tools for independent sellers, including a plugin that enables them to manage their Amazon businesses through Anthropic’s Claude or Amazon’s Quick assistant without the need to access Seller Central.

This move aims to streamline inventory checking, price adjustments, and listing updates for sellers, with about 90% already utilizing external AI tools to run various aspects of their operations.

Mary Beth Westmoreland, Amazon’s vice president of Worldwide Selling Partner Experience, shared that the vision is to provide sellers with a seamless experience without having to log into Seller Central.

The announcement was made at Accelerate, Amazon’s annual seller conference in Seattle, where the company also unveiled automations for monitoring seller businesses and an upgraded Seller Assistant that retains seller preferences from session to session.

The significance: Independent sellers contribute over 60% of units sold on Amazon globally, generating $46.8 billion in fees in the second quarter, surpassing AWS revenue.

These fees are central to the Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust case against Amazon, alleging overcharging and penalization of sellers offering lower prices elsewhere, a claim Amazon refutes.

The trial for the case is scheduled for March 2027 in a federal court in Seattle.

Apart from seller fees, Amazon’s advertising business, generating $19.8 billion in the quarter, is crucial for sellers to promote products. The FTC notes that Amazon’s fees consume a significant portion of sellers’ revenue.

Sellers at Accelerate applauded Amazon’s decision to end commingling, demonstrating their pragmatic nature.

Platform integration: Amazon’s move to connect seller tools with external AI platforms offers sellers more flexibility in managing their presence on the e-commerce platform, although Amazon retains control over supported platforms.

This integration follows Amazon’s block of Meta’s Muse AI agent due to non-compliance with site rules, emphasizing the need for adherence to guidelines.

Amazon’s investment in Anthropic, powering Seller Assistant through Claude models, demonstrates continued collaboration for enhanced seller experiences.

Future integrations beyond Claude and Quick are anticipated, with a modular approach to support additional plugins, according to Westmoreland.

Functionality: Amazon asserts that connecting Claude to seller accounts is seamless, requiring no coding and taking about 60 seconds. The plugin enables access to listings, inventory levels, sales data, and performance metrics, empowering outside assistants to act like Seller Assistant within Seller Central.

Sellers have control over data access and action approvals, ensuring data privacy and security. The plugin is currently in beta in Amazon’s U.S. stores, with plans for international expansion.

Seller Assistant enhancements include a new canvas feature for visual data analysis and a free 12-month Amazon Quick Plus subscription for primary selling account holders worldwide until December 31, 2026.

Amid leadership changes in the seller organization, Amazon veteran Amit Agarwal now heads selling partner services, emphasizing Amazon’s commitment to seller support and innovation.