Amazon, Perplexity case a test of ability to fit agentic AI to 1980s US law
By Mike Swift ( June 12, 2026, 01:15 GMT | Insight) -- A trio of Ninth Circuit judges wrestled Thursday with whether the 1986 Computer Fraud and Abuse Act can be applied to modern AI agents during Perplexity AI’s appeal of an injunction won by Amazon this year. Judges questioned whether legal ambiguity of a pre-internet statute should favor Perplexity under the rule of lenity and raised broader questions about AI agency and intent. Amazon argued existing precedent clearly bars unauthorized access to password-protected accounts, while Perplexity said its AI acts as a user's agent and the law is ill-suited to the technology.As Perplexity AI seeks to have a US appeals court reverse an injunction Amazon won from a district court judge earlier this year, a trio of judges struggled Thursday to apply 1980s-era computer hacking laws to the emerging technology of agentic artificial intelligence....
Prepare for tomorrow’s regulatory change, today
MLex identifies risk to business wherever it emerges, with specialist reporters across the globe providing exclusive news and deep-dive analysis on the proposals, probes, enforcement actions and rulings that matter to your organization and clients, now and in the longer term.
Know what others in the room don’t, with features including:
- Daily newsletters for Antitrust, M&A, Trade, Data Privacy & Security, Technology, AI and more
- Custom alerts on specific filters including geographies, industries, topics and companies to suit your practice needs
- Predictive analysis from expert journalists across North America, the UK and Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific
- Curated case files bringing together news, analysis and source documents in a single timeline
Experience MLex today with a 14-day free trial.