Amazon introduced its AI-powered “About You” profiles in May, recasting the familiar recommendation engine as something customers can inspect. The feature draws on purchase histories, searches, saved lists, reviews and Alexa for Shopping conversations, then lets users edit or delete the assumptions that guide product suggestions.¹

The timing has made the tool a social-media spectacle. As shoppers began comparing dossiers, Amazon’s supposedly helpful inferences read less like bland retail targeting and more like unsolicited character analysis: one user said the system concluded she had “flat buttocks”; another found it had identified a husband with “skinny legs.” A third was startled by the observation that they use a phone in the shower to read Kindle books. The appeal, and the discomfort, lies in seeing the profile usually kept behind the curtain.¹

A Business Insider newsroom test suggested the algorithm is neither clairvoyant nor wholly random. Staff commonly found roughly 30 to 45 observations. It often recognized pets, locations, grocery habits and purchases, but mangled family details and relationships. One editor’s shared account led Amazon to identify one cat while missing another; another profile incorrectly assigned someone a girlfriend named “Barry.” Yet many judgments landed close enough to feel invasive: one reporter said the system knew she favored organic produce and glass food storage, while another was tagged as having “bathroom safety” needs after buying a shower chair.²

That mixed record is central to the unease. Wrong guesses can be amusing, but the underlying system is built from a broad behavioral trail—and its conclusions may still steer people toward particular products and brands. One analysis argues that Amazon’s page is only a visible fragment of a far larger shift: AI services are being granted access to email, calendars, texts and bank accounts as companies seek ways to turn expensive AI investments into revenue.³

For now, Amazon offers users a measure of correction. The broader question is whether the ability to edit a dossier is enough reassurance once shoppers understand how detailed the dossier can become.