Amazon plans a database of products sold across the internet

In short: Amazon is reportedly building a “World Product Graph” to collect information about products sold anywhere online, even if Amazon does not sell them.

What happened

Reuters reports that Amazon is working on a project called the World Product Graph. The idea is to create a large store of information about products across the internet, including items sold on other sites.

Think of it like a giant card catalog for products (similar to an old library index), but updated all the time and focused on shopping. It would include details that help people compare items, such as basic descriptions and other product data.

According to the report, one goal is to reduce the chances that shoppers leave Amazon to do research elsewhere, like on Google or Reddit. Amazon wants people to start their search on Amazon even when the final purchase might happen on another store.

The report also connects this to the rise of AI agents. AI agents are software tools that can take actions for you, like searching for options and comparing them. If these tools need a reliable place to look up product details, Amazon would like them to use Amazon’s data.

Why it matters

For everyday shoppers, this could mean Amazon becomes more of a default place to research products, not just buy them. That may be convenient, but it also concentrates more shopping attention in one company’s hands. It could affect where people discover products, and how other sites get traffic when people are deciding what to buy.

Source: The Verge AI