AI-Driven Cookies Will Change Digital Experience

The Gist

• AI-powered privacy. Agentic cookies use AI to control what data gets shared, which gives users more autonomy over their online privacy and personalization.

• Better data, less noise. Marketers get cleaner, more relevant insights through voluntary data sharing, which reduces the need for excessive tracking.

• The end of banners. Agentic cookies could replace annoying cookie pop-ups with real-time, AI-driven negotiations for seamless browsing.

Cookies have been around for a while; more specifically, since October 1994, when Netscape incorporated them into its browser. Netscape did this to address the fact that HTTP, the protocol on which the Internet operates, does not support states; it is stateless.

But we needed states to have functionality like logging into a site or adding things to a cart. Cookies were invented to keep those “states” stored in a humble text file. 

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The Rise of Cookies: From Convenience to Controversy

Quickly, it was clear that you could store more pieces of information, like user preferences. It also became evident that they could serve as tracking devices that could be used to target the user based on their online behaviors, which presented a big business opportunity. DoubleClick was founded in early 1995, and since then, the AdTech industry has exploded, becoming one of the biggest industries in history. Gradually, concerns about this tracking capabilities grew, and different ways to tackle them have appeared, from technical to legal.

Since those early days, most web components have evolved quite a bit, yet cookies haven’t. They’re still a modest file text. Regardless of the pressure and constant promises, they are still in your browser. The reason, the same as in 1994, is that we need them to make HTTP state-aware. 

Cookies are not going away. But they will mutate for the first time. I believe this will happen through agentic cookies, with AI playing a central role in driving the change.

The debate over cookies is complex. They are needed for the personalized experience we seek, but they also expose us to invasive tracking practices. Additionally, we are completely dependent on the major companies that own browsers to determine how to address the issue. We’ve been hearing for a while now that third-party cookies are going away, with various alternatives being proposed and then abandoned. Ultimately, we want cookies because they allow personalized experiences, but we can’t control how they are used.

Agentic Cookies Are Transforming AI-Powered Privacy

With edge AI, like WebLLM models running on your browser, we will eventually be able to have secure models at our disposal that will open new opportunities for cookies, not only with browsers but also for every touchpoint we use to interact with the web. This edge AI will change the way we understand online privacy and personalization, and it will structurally modify the way we share information with brands on different layers, not just through tracking.

From Passive Tracking to Active AI Assistants

Imagine your agentic cookie constantly observing how you respond to consent pop-ups asking to share your location. It will start learning what you want to share, with whom and when. Over time, it will remember your preferences, and it will serve as a negotiation whenever a new site requests any personal data from you. That’s the leap from a passive cookie to an active, agentic one.

Unlike traditional cookies, which store a static list of preferences and session identifiers, an agentic cookie is an AI-powered mini-digital double that continually learns your behaviors and preferences. It will also warn you against risks and threats. It will be your personal data concierge and advisor.

When you visit your banking site from home, the agentic cookie will volunteer detailed information (enough to verify your identity without hassle) because it recognizes you trust this organization. But if you land on an unknown ecommerce site for the first time, your agentic cookie will limit what it shares. If the site is requesting your location, the cookie might decide to prompt you for permission, decline outright or provide a limited form of data until you establish more trust. It could, for example, share your zip code but not your specific location.

Related Article: Agentic CX and Marketing: The Future of Customer Journeys

Agentic Cookies Benefit Both Users and Marketers

Beyond gatekeeping, agentic cookies play an active role in tailoring your web experience. For example, you may be an obsessed shoe shopper, and you would happily share with any retailer your shoe size, preferred material and color preferences, perhaps even previous interactions and transactions with other providers. This approach would create a balance between anonymity and valuable information and allow marketers to deliver a more meaningful experience. When individuals feel their data is managed transparently, they’re more likely to share accurate information, which ultimately benefits both themselves and the brands vying for their attention.

A Win-Win for Privacy and Personalization

Some marketers might initially worry that an approach like this will undermine their ad targeting and personalization efforts, but agentic cookies will cause the opposite. Marketers will indeed have less data, but it will be more usable data. They will have access to zero-party data from the first interaction and without friction. They will be able to provide the right experience from the first interaction. When data sharing is voluntary and contextual, the information will be more precise, up-to-date and relevant. Marketers will have to spend fewer resources sorting through noisy, inflated and irrelevant data sets, and they can shift focus to authentic engagement strategies.

Picture a future where a user’s intent to buy a laptop triggers an agentic cookie to enter a focused “shopping assistant” state. The user, with complete control over their privacy, authorizes the cookie to share granular but anonymized demographic insights. Retailers get the signal and can serve ads that are hyper-targeted and relevant in time. Both parties gain benefits. The user receives a relevant experience through targeted offers, while retailers benefit from higher conversion rates and reduced ad spending.

Making Agentic Cookies Smarter and More User-Friendly

No grand transformation happens overnight. Agentic cookies will require robust AI algorithms, blockchain and other Web3 capabilities to offer secure, transparent and tamper-proof interactions. But it will happen eventually. Just as streaming platforms disrupted record labels and ride-sharing apps disrupted taxi monopolies, agentic cookies are going to dismantle the dominance of traditional AdTech.

Agentic cookies will also broaden brand innovation. For example, marketers can develop interactive loyalty programs that respond in real time to a user’s preferences or transaction history. They can experiment with unique reward systems or limited-time offers secured on a blockchain ledger for transparency. Meanwhile, the agentic cookie stands guard and makes sure that user data is exchanged only when the user is willing and only in ways they’ve approved.