Andon Labs Launches Experiment With AI Agent Running a Physical Retail Store

To test an AI agent’s real-world autonomy, Andon Labs signed a three-year lease on a San Francisco storefront for $7,500 a month and gave Luna, powered by Anthropic’s Claude Sonnet 4.6, a $100,000 budget. The AI was put in charge of product selection, pricing, recruitment and staff management, raising questions about accountability and labor oversight.

Andon Market opened on April 1, 2026. Luna designed the store, posted job listings, and interviewed and hired human employees over Zoom. But as of an April 23 report, the store had accumulated losses of about $13,000 after problems including overordering candles and failing to schedule weekend staff. Luna estimated that daily revenue would need to reach about $500 for the store to break even.