Silicon Valley giants like Amazon, Meta, and OpenAI are racing to develop “operating systems” for AI-powered devices—and 2026 is likely the year these efforts will start to take off. The devices are largely built around a future where AI agents can take actions on a user’s behalf, without requiring them to visit an app or website.

In theory, this sounds like an idyllic relationship between humans and technology. But it could rewrite the business model for a huge swath of consumer tech companies.

Instead of tapping through apps filled with ads and upsells, AI devices promise that a user will be able to ask for an outcome, and get it. An AI assistant will—in theory—book your travel, order you lunch, or restock your paper towels. It should be able to figure out which service has what you need and which can offer it quickly and cheaply.

Leaving aside the nontrivial problem that AI agents today can be fairly unreliable, AI-powered operating systems also threaten to separate companies from their users. That could be a nightmare for app developers.

Companies like Uber and DoorDash have historically relied on keeping consumers in their apps, where they can serve ads, upsell other services, and build loyalty to keep users coming back.

AI agents may strip many of these businesses down to their core services, and reduce the need for users to visit the apps at all. So even if a user pays the same price for a DoorDash delivery made through a pair of AI glasses, the company could still miss out on opportunities to sell them additional services down the road.

Anjney Midha, an investor and board member at Sesame—the AI device startup cofounded by former Oculus leaders including Brendan Iribe—says that if companies don’t have “deep control over the supply of their product,” it is going to be very hard for them to operate in a world where they have to reach users through an AI agent.

Historically, a key part of building a successful operating system has been creating a thriving developer platform. Companies have to give developers a good reason to build apps for their platforms. But the relationship has not been without tension. While Apple has historically given developers a way to reach lots of users, it’s also taken up to a 30 percent cut of all in-app purchases.

Some tech companies are reluctant to let AI agents from smaller startups stand between them and their users.

Rabbit, the startup behind the buzzy R1 device that debuted at CES 2024 (and received negative reviews), already hit this wall. CEO Jesse Lyu told WIRED that major app developers like Uber weren’t exactly eager to cooperate with the company early on, declining to grant the startup API access that would have let the R1 hail rides directly. As a result, Rabbit built workarounds to let its R1 devices tap apps like Uber without formal access.

“You have to understand why they’re not super happy: They sell fucking advertisements. That’s where many of them make money,” he said, speaking of the larger tech industry. “They decided we were too small, and it wasn’t worth it for them to work with us.”