Walmart will let AI shop for you, with a spending limit you set

Happy Friday! This week, the big stores started writing the rules for AI helpers that shop for you, and two popular AI apps got new privacy options. Here’s what it means for you, in five minutes.

In today’s 5 minutes

• Walmart is setting rules for AI helpers that shop for you, including spending limits and approvals.
• Gemini and ChatGPT got two updates worth knowing: day plans built from your saved places, and a PIN lock for private chats.
• A new scam call pretends to be the FTC and threatens to shut off your phone number. Here’s how to spot it.

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The big one: Walmart will let AI shop for you, with a spending limit you set

An AI shopping agent is an app that can find and buy things for you after you ask in plain words, like “reorder our usual groceries.” On Wednesday, Walmart announced how it wants these helpers to work when they shop at Walmart and Sam’s Club.

Here’s what Walmart says is coming:

• A separate profile for each AI helper. Walmart calls these Agent Profiles, and says they launch within the next month. Anything the AI buys shows up apart from your own orders, so you can see exactly what it did.
• You choose the rules. You can approve every purchase, or let the AI buy things up to a limit you pick. Walmart’s examples are $50, $100 or $200. Approval for every purchase is the default.
• It never sees your card. Walmart says AI helpers don’t get your payment card details and can’t add or change how you pay.
• Returns still work. Walmart’s normal returns apply, including when an AI helper buys something you didn’t mean it to.
• Same prices. Walmart says an AI helper sees the same prices you would see on Walmart.com.
• You can switch it off. You can turn off or delete an AI helper’s profile at any time.

TechCrunch reports you don’t need a Walmart+ membership to use it. Not every store agrees. Axios reports that Amazon has blocked Meta’s new AI helper, Muse, saying it didn’t authorize Muse to access customer accounts or process transactions.

What it means for you: you don’t have to let an AI shop for you, and Walmart says it won’t be for everyone. If you try it, start with “approve every purchase,” check the AI’s orders for a week or two, and only then think about a small spending limit.

Sources: Walmart, “Walmart Makes It Possible for Agents to Shop on Behalf of Customers” · TechCrunch, “While Amazon blocks AI agents, Walmart rolls out the welcome mat” · Axios, “Walmart welcomes AI agents while rival Amazon blocks Muse”

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Gemini can now plan your day around places you’ve saved

Google’s Gemini assistant has an optional feature called Personal Intelligence. If you switch it on, Gemini can look at the Google apps you choose, like Gmail and Calendar, to give answers about your own life. On Thursday, Google said Gemini can now also use your Google Maps searches and saved places, alongside your calendar.

Google’s example: “I have a list of restaurants I’ve been meaning to try. What’s the best spot for after my meetings today?” Gemini checks where your last meeting is and suggests a saved spot nearby. Earlier this week, Google also started bringing Personal Intelligence to Android Auto in cars.

What it means for you: if you save places in Google Maps, Gemini can now turn that list into plans. It’s off until you turn it on, and you pick which apps it can see. It’s for personal Google accounts, ages 18 and up. You can manage it at gemini.google.com/personalization-settings.

Sources: 9to5Google, “Gemini app expands Google Maps Personal Intelligence” · Google, “Personal Intelligence brings Gemini to cars globally”

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ChatGPT lets you lock private chats behind a PIN

ChatGPT now has locked chats. You can hide a conversation from your regular chat list and search, and open it only with a 4-digit PIN, or with Face ID, Touch ID or your phone’s unlock on supported phones. OpenAI says it is rolling out gradually to Free, Go, Plus and Pro users on the web and in the iPhone and Android apps.

To try it, tap the ••• menu on a chat and choose Lock chat. Locked chats live under Projects > Locked chats.

What it means for you: this is handy if you share a computer or a tablet, or show your screen to others, and you’ve asked ChatGPT about something personal, like health or money. Two things to know. First, it hides the chat, but it isn’t a separate encrypted vault, and it doesn’t change how long OpenAI keeps your chats. Second, if you forget your PIN and reset it, your locked chats are deleted for good. Pick a PIN you’ll remember.

Sources: OpenAI, “ChatGPT release notes” · OpenAI Help Center, “Using locked chats in ChatGPT”

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Scam alert: the “FTC” isn’t calling to shut off your phone

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warned on Thursday about a new scam call. Someone claiming to be from the FTC says a phone registered in your name is being used for scams in another country, and threatens to deactivate your number. They read out a fake badge number and transfer you to a fake police officer. Later they say you’re under arrest, unless you send money for a “security deposit.”

The FTC says a real FTC employee will never ask you to send money, never threaten to cut off your phone, never tell you to keep the call secret, and never text you a photo of their ID. The FBI also warned last week that scammers are using AI tools to make realistic fake voices, pictures and messages around the midterm elections.

What it means for you: if a call scares you and tells you to keep it secret, hang up. Look up the agency’s number yourself, from its official website, not from the caller. Report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

Sources: FTC, “The FTC is not calling to deactivate your phone number” · FBI IC3, “Scammers Exploit 2026 U.S. Midterm Election to Perpetrate Multiple Fraud Schemes”

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Copy this prompt

Thinking about letting an AI app shop for you? Paste this into any free chatbot, like ChatGPT, Gemini or Claude:

I’m thinking about letting an AI app buy things for me at an online store. Give me a short checklist, 8 items at most, of the settings and safety steps I should check before I connect it to my account. Think about spending limits, purchase approvals, payment details and returns. Use plain English, no jargon.

Tip: use the answer as a checklist, then check the store’s own help pages, since every store’s settings are different.

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One free tool to try: Merlin Bird ID

Heard a bird outside and wondered what it was? Merlin Bird ID, a free app from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, listens to birdsong and suggests who’s singing, in real time. You can also snap a photo, or answer three simple questions, to get a short list of likely birds. Sound ID and Photo ID even work offline.

Get Merlin Bird ID

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Jargon buster

AI agent: an AI helper that doesn’t just answer questions but actually does things for you, like shopping or booking, ideally checking with you first.

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That’s your five minutes. Have a great weekend!

The Five-Minute AI [email protected]

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