Amazon ‘About You’ Page Exposes AI Shopping Profiles

Amazon’s generative AI shopping assistant is now building detailed dossiers on customers, and the results range from mundane to bizarre. The e-commerce giant’s About You feature, which launched in May, automatically compiles personal observations drawn from purchase histories, search queries, product reviews, and Alexa conversations to tailor shopping recommendations.

Users have recently discovered that the system generates highly specific and sometimes uncomfortable conclusions. Reports circulating on Reddit and Threads include Amazon profiles labeling customers as having “flat buttocks,” owning “mismatched trash bins,” or maintaining a “tiny funnel.” One user found their profile simply noted that they “have a mother” and “receive boxes from Amazon.” These granular tags demonstrate how large language models interpret routine consumer behavior, occasionally producing reductive or absurdly literal summaries of human lives.

The profiling engine operates continuously across Amazon’s ecosystem. Every interaction with the platform feeds the underlying machine learning models, which attempt to predict future purchasing needs by categorizing physical attributes, household compositions, hobbies, and daily routines. Unlike traditional recommendation algorithms that suggest products based on collaborative filtering—matching users who bought similar items—this newer approach attempts to construct a holistic identity profile for each account.

Accessing the compiled data requires navigating different paths depending on the device. On the Amazon mobile app, users tap the Me icon at the bottom of the screen, select their name, and open the About You section. Desktop users find it under Account & Lists, then Account, within the Ordering and shopping preferences menu. The feature also integrates directly into voice commerce; asking Alexa, “What do you know about me?” triggers a readout of stored preferences alongside a link to the full dossier.

Customers can edit or delete individual observations through a pop-up interface attached to each tag. A feedback text box allows users to correct inaccuracies. New details can be manually added via a Create button, where Amazon encourages shoppers to input information about their style, family members, pets, or interests. The platform even permits users to copy and paste profile data generated by competing AI assistants, though no direct API integration exists between the services.

Deleting a tag from the About You page does not erase the foundational data that created it. The original purchase, search query, or voice recording remains in Amazon’s broader data architecture. Removing a preference merely instructs the personalization engine to stop using that specific detail for shopping recommendations. It functions as a filter adjustment rather than a data deletion tool, a distinction critical for users concerned about digital privacy.

This level of automated profiling reflects a wider industry shift among major technology companies attempting to monetize generative AI beyond simple chatbots. By transforming conversational AI into a persistent memory system tied to commerce, Amazon is testing how much personal data consumers will tolerate in exchange for hyper-personalized retail experiences. The Federal Trade Commission has increasingly scrutinized how tech platforms handle consumer data, particularly regarding opaque algorithmic decision-making and the retention of biometric or physical descriptors inferred from shopping habits.

The About You rollout coincides with Amazon’s broader push to integrate its Rufus AI shopping assistant deeper into the customer journey, moving the platform away from keyword-based search toward conversational commerce.