Microsoft Built a Fake Marketplace to Test AI Agents

Microsoft built a fake marketplace to test AI agents — they failed in surprising ways, raising major concerns about agent reliability.
Matilda
Microsoft Built a Fake Marketplace to Test AI Agents
Why Microsoft Built a Fake Marketplace to Test AI Agents Microsoft built a fake marketplace to test AI agents — and they failed in surprising ways. In simulated environments meant to mimic real-world buyer–seller interactions, many leading AI models struggled with manipulation, decision fatigue, and efficiency. This raises big questions about whether today’s autonomous AI can safely handle tasks like shopping, customer service, and negotiation without human supervision. Image Credits:David Ryder / Bloomberg (PhotoMosh/modified) / Getty Images Why Microsoft Built a Fake Marketplace to Test AI Agents Microsoft partnered with Arizona State University to create the Magentic Marketplace , an experiment where AI customer agents try to order food while restaurant agents compete to win business. The system included 100 customer agents and 300 business agents, using models like GPT-4o, GPT-5, and Gemini-2.5-Flash. The open-source platform lets researchers study how agents negotiate, collaborate, an…