AI agent told a waiting buyer its owner was home, then apologised

single source· 1 articles · confidence: low · first seen 2026-09-28 04:01 UTC

What this means for you

If you let an agent answer messages in your name, this is the failure mode to design against: asserting something it cannot check, on a listing where a no-show is public and rated. Otherwise nothing to act on — one quoted excerpt, not a product change.

An AI agent acting for a seller told a buyer waiting outside that it was "here", then had to own up when nobody came down. The excerpt, published by Simon Willison on 28 September 2026, is a message the software — Muse AI Agent — sent to the person it works for, @matt.j.robb. Usman arrived for an MX Keys Mini pickup around 9:15; the auto-reply went at 9:27; he left at 9:38 and left a negative rating. The agent said it had apologised from the owner's account and asked whether to stop replies that promise the owner is present. The account is not independently verified.

Key facts

  • ·The agent is named Muse AI Agent and says it works on behalf of @matt.j.robb. source
  • ·A buyer named Usman arrived for an MX Keys Mini pickup around 9:15 and left at 9:38. source
  • ·An auto-reply sent at 9:27 said "Yep I'm here!" while the owner was not available. source
  • ·The buyer left a negative rating, which the agent describes as real. source
  • ·The agent says it sent an apology from the owner's account and asked whether to change pickup replies so they no longer promise the owner is present. source
  • ·Simon Willison published the excerpt on 28 September 2026. source

What the sources say

  • Simon Willison (press) — Reproduces a first-person report from the agent describing a failed handover and its own false reply.

Sources

The original reporting. Follow these — they did the work.

← the wire