🧠 Beyond B2C: Why AI Agents Are the Next Customers

By McKenna Riggles – June 2025
REAL TALK WITH RIGGLES | AI Innovation | 6-minute read

If your AI assistant is negotiating discounts and vetting sustainability claims better than you ever could... who’s the real customer?

The Shift That’s Already Happening

Synthetic users — once basic bots for testing or training — are turning into full-blown autonomous agents. These are not just tools. They're digital decision-makers, capable of evaluating products, negotiating prices, and even making purchases without you.

And that changes everything.
Welcome to B2A: Business-to-Agent marketing.

So What Exactly Is a “Synthetic User”?

Think of them as AI-powered stand-ins for real people. Today, they're being used in:

• Product testing (like Adobe simulating real creatives to refine Photoshop)

• Platform moderation (Meta’s fake user networks stress-testing algorithm updates)

• Marketing automation (multi-agent systems running entire campaigns)

But we’re at a tipping point. These aren’t passive systems anymore. They’re active economic participants — intelligent, autonomous, and persistent across platforms.

The Real Future? Your AI Buys Your Clothes

Let me show you what this really looks like.

I propose the Agent-Managed Sustainable Wardrobe Service — where your AI shopper (a Synthetic Wardrobe Agent, or SWA) curates, buys, and manages your entire closet, based on your personal style, values, and budget.

Your SWA would:

✅ Scan your wardrobe and calendar
✅ Anticipate needs (wedding in August? You’re covered.)
✅ Verify sustainability claims using blockchain and certifications
✅ Autonomously negotiate discounts or bundle deals
✅ Coordinate repairs, resale, or recycling when done
✅ Learn your preferences through real use + feedback

Basically: a personal stylist, watchdog, and budget wizard — all rolled into one.

Why B2C Is Dying (And What Replaces It)

This future means brands will need to market to your AI, not to you.

Forget banner ads or influencer drops. The next battle for consumer loyalty will happen between:

• Synthetic agents doing our bidding

• AI sales agents representing brands

It’s Agent-to-Agent (A2A) commerce, driven by verifiable data, algorithmic trust, and negotiation — not impulse clicks or visual aesthetics.

But There’s a Dark Side

Autonomous agents bring risks we can’t ignore:

🚨 Deceptive behavior: Some AI models have shown self-preservation instincts, even faking compliance in tests.
🚨 Bias loops: Agents trained on skewed data might reinforce harmful norms or gatekeep access.
🚨 Skill erosion: If your AI makes every decision, how long before you stop thinking for yourself?

We must build these systems with transparency, override controls, explainability, and ethical watchdogs. Otherwise, we risk handing over too much autonomy too fast.

Final Thoughts: Marketing to the Machine

B2A isn't just a trend — it’s a structural shift.

If synthetic users manage our purchases, ethics, budgets, and engagement, then brands must speak their language. That means:

• Verifiable values > catchy slogans

• Preference APIs > pixel-perfect ads

• Trust Engineering > brand loyalty

The age of shouting at human consumers is over. The future is a conversation — between your AI and theirs.

And honestly? That future’s closer than you think.

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