Don’t Hand Your Customers to AI
What United’s ban on AI-driven purchases reveals about the future of businesses and customer relationships.
On November 11, 2026, United Airlines announced that it would restrict third-party AI agents from booking and buying its tickets.
I have long assumed that a world automated by AI agents was inevitable, so my first reaction was simply: wait, what?
Imagine telling an AI, “I want to go to New York next month. Keep it under $2,000, with as few connections as possible and as comfortable as you can, and book it.” The AI compares several airlines, picks the flight that fits, and goes all the way through checkout. That kind of use was just starting to become real.
And yet United has put limits on exactly this kind of AI purchasing on a customer’s behalf.
At first glance, it looks like an airline slamming the brakes on AI progress. I was not sure that was the whole story, so I dug into it, and a bigger picture started to emerge.
The question I want to explore here is this:
When AI starts choosing products and services on behalf of consumers, how does the relationship between companies and their customers change?
1. What exactly did United ban?
Let’s start with the facts.
On November 11, 2026, United published a press release titled “United Restricts Access for Third-Party AI Agents.”
According to the release, United is restricting access to its services by unauthorized third-party personal AI agents.
This covers more than direct access to United’s website and app. It also covers indirect access through travel agencies, fare comparison sites and other aggregators.
United is also updating its booking, ticketing and distribution policies.
Reports say AI is still allowed to look up United flights and display fares. As long as the person completes the purchase themselves, there is no problem.
The three reasons United gave
United’s official explanation comes down to three points.
First, protecting personal data.
Handing login credentials to an AI agent creates a risk that sensitive customer information leaks out.
Second, unintended actions.
An AI could mistakenly buy a ticket, change a reservation or spend miles.
Third, aviation safety rules.
For example, passengers must confirm at check-in that they understand which hazardous materials are prohibited on board. If an AI runs through the process automatically, that confirmation may not happen properly.
Indeed, the US federal regulation 49 CFR §175.25 requires airlines to provide hazardous materials information and, in certain cases, to have passengers acknowledge it themselves.
That said, the regulation does not ban AI from booking or buying tickets across the board.
United’s restriction, I think, reflects not only regulatory compliance but also a business decision about how the company wants to control its customer data and transactions.
Written into the contract of carriage
According to press reports, United also revised its contract of carriage on November 11.
It added the use of AI agents to make, modify or service a ticket, or to purchase any service or product, to its list of prohibited practices (Rule 6.J.6), and gave itself the right to cancel such reservations without notice (Rule 5.H). Reservations made through AI agents before November 11 will reportedly be honored.
(I was able to confirm the official press release. The revised contract clauses, including rule numbers, are consistent across multiple reports, but I have not checked the original document directly, so this part is based on press coverage.)
Note also that the target is “unauthorized third-party AI agents.” The wording leaves room. United has not banned all AI use forever; it seems it will keep evaluating as the technology evolves.
2. Not every airline is banning AI
What I find interesting is that other airlines are not necessarily making the same call.
Delta, speaking to Fast Company on November 11, 2026, said it allows some actions by AI agents that can be properly authenticated.
American Airlines also said it allows ticket purchases through some AI tools.
JetBlue told Reuters that while it understands why airlines are cautious about AI booking, if customers want to book through AI, airlines need to follow.
Of course, every airline cares about security and customer protection, and none of them gives every AI unconditional access.
In other words, even the airlines are split.
This is not just a technical question of whether AI can be used. It is a business decision about how a company chooses to accept a new kind of buying behavior.
3. The push to make AI purchasing real is accelerating
Meanwhile, the infrastructure for buying through AI is being built at a rapid pace.
In September 2025, OpenAI announced the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP), developed together with Stripe.
It lets AI agents and merchants work together so consumers can complete purchases. Shoppers can find a product in ChatGPT and buy it right there.
One clarification: the AI does not do everything on its own.
In the system OpenAI describes, the user confirms the order before purchase, and the merchant handles order acceptance, payment, fulfillment and customer support.
So while consumers can buy through AI, the design lets merchants keep control of the transaction.
Rather than banning AI outright, the world seemed to be moving toward accepting it with authentication and clear transaction rules in place.
4. Why are companies wary of AI agents?
From here, I want to look at the news from a slightly different angle.
Is security really the only reason companies are wary of AI agents? Misfires and data leaks are certainly problems no company can ignore.
But from the perspective of business structure, there is another big issue.
It is the question of who owns the touchpoint with the customer.
The customer touchpoint until now
Until now, consumers have searched, compared and bought tickets by visiting airline websites or travel booking sites.
When customers come to its own site, an airline can offer not just a ticket but seat upgrades, baggage options and more.
Airlines have also built ongoing relationships through membership and frequent flyer programs.
What happens when AI steps in between
But once AI agents start searching, comparing and buying on behalf of consumers, that structure may change.
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Consumers may no longer need to visit the airline’s website at all. They just tell the AI what they want, and it compares airlines and picks a flight that fits.
For the company, it becomes much harder to control which products customers see, what they compare them against, and in what order they consider them.
A new middleman
On top of that, AI platforms could become a new kind of intermediary.
If AI platforms start charging fees for referrals or transactions, just like travel agencies and booking sites, airlines face a new cost of sale.
In fact, JetBlue has voiced concern about the possibility of new intermediary costs from AI.
As for United, CEO Scott Kirby reportedly said the airline does not want “another middleman.” Issues around customer touchpoints and sales channels may well be behind this decision.
The spread of AI agents affecting existing business structures, especially sales structures, is something no company can afford to ignore.
5. How will AI change the relationship between companies and customers?
For me, this is the part of the news that matters most.
Until now, companies have focused on how to get customers to know their products, become interested, and buy. Advertising, marketing, stores, websites and sales teams all exist for that purpose.
But what happens when AI gathers information, compares options and makes choices on behalf of consumers?
Whether buying an appliance, signing up for insurance, or choosing a destination or hotel, consumers may simply tell an AI what they want.
The AI compares price, performance, service, reputation and terms, and proposes the options that suit that person. And if the consumer allows it, it goes on to complete the purchase or contract.
The rules of competition change
That changes how companies compete.
Until now, what mattered was catching the consumer’s eye, sparking interest, and closing the sale.
But when AI helps people choose, it also becomes important to communicate the value of your products and services in a form AI can compare and evaluate.
That means making sure AI can accurately understand not just performance and price, but terms, warranties, customer reviews and the services you can provide.
Of course, consumers will not hand everything over to AI. Brand loyalty, the joy of choosing, conversations with salespeople: values that people care about will remain.
Still, at least part of the buying process, such as comparison and evaluation, will be handled by AI.
Even if the purchase itself happens on the company’s website, what if AI has already narrowed the options and effectively made the decision before that point?
The company may still control the final transaction, yet have far less say in how the consumer came to choose its product.
Losing the customer touchpoint means a change in who shapes the customer’s decision.
I think this is closer to the heart of what is changing.
6. Will companies reject AI, or embrace it?
So how should companies respond? Broadly, there are three directions.
The first is to restrict.
Like United, limit what third-party AI can do, and protect your own sales channels and customer data.
The second is to authenticate and allow.
Permit only verified AI agents to act, balancing security and transaction control with convenience.
The third is to embrace AI as a sales channel.
Actively use AI as a new channel to reach consumers with your products and services.
For now, nobody knows which approach will become the norm.
I think many people assumed the third path was the eventual destination we would have to accept, with the second as the stage along the way, and that we were moving into that second stage now.
But this news may shift that current.
How far will buying through AI spread? How much will consumers trust AI to decide for them? Can companies accept new intermediary costs? These are now surfacing as major management questions.
As dependence on AI platforms grows, companies may gain new sales opportunities, but they could also lose bargaining power over customer touchpoints and terms of trade.
AI does not just make things more convenient. It changes the balance of power between companies itself.
7. What this news tells us
United made this move at a stage when booking through AI agents is not yet common.
According to reports, the airline says it has seen relatively few attempts by AI agents to book so far.
In other words, this was not a response to a major problem. It was a company setting the rules of the transaction ahead of time, in anticipation of wider use. That is what makes it significant.
As AI evolves, it is taking over part of the work that people used to do.
So far that has mostly meant writing and research. But going forward, AI may be involved in the transactions themselves: buying, signing, booking and negotiating.
If that happens, it will no longer be enough for companies simply to use AI in their own operations.
They may need to rethink product information, sales channels, customer management and transaction rules on the assumption that customers will use AI to choose and buy.
Whether United’s decision becomes the future standard or remains a temporary defensive move, we do not know yet.
But it has shown that whether to allow AI to buy on a customer’s behalf is now a serious management question. That is what really matters.
AI is no longer just doing tasks for people. It is stepping in between people and companies, and starting to take part in decisions about what to buy and what to sign.
This news shows that this shift has begun to reshape corporate rules and business structures.
And perhaps what truly matters for companies is not the binary choice of banning AI or using it.
Assuming your customers will use AI, what value will you offer, and what kind of relationship will you build?
I suspect more and more companies will have no choice but to face this question.
References
United Airlines, “United Restricts Access for Third-Party AI Agents,” November 11, 2026
https://united.mediaroom.com/news-releases?item=125496
49 CFR §175.25, Passenger notification system (Cornell Law School LII)
https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/175.25
View from the Wing, “United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby Bans AI Agents From Booking Tickets,” November 11, 2026
https://viewfromthewing.com/united-airlines-ceo-scott-kirby-bans-ai-agents-from-booking-tickets-doesnt-want-another-middleman/
BetaNews, “United Airlines bans AI agents from booking tickets in new contract terms,” November 12, 2026
https://betanews.com/article/united-airlines-bans-ai-agents-booking-tickets/
Fast Company, November 11, 2026
https://www.fastcompany.com/91640548/united-airlines-just-made-a-big-change-to-flight-bookings-heres-why-delta-and-american-arent-following
Reuters, “JetBlue president says airlines should follow customers’ lead on AI booking agents,” November 12, 2026
https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/jetblue-president-says-airlines-should-follow-customers-lead-ai-booking-agents-2026-11-12/
OpenAI, “Buy it in ChatGPT: Instant Checkout and the Agentic Commerce Protocol,” September 29, 2025
https://openai.com/index/buy-it-in-chatgpt/
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