U.S. FTC Probes Instacart's AI-Powered Pricing Tool

Deep News12-18 08:11

According to informed sources, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is investigating grocery delivery platform Instacart following criticism of its AI-driven pricing tool.

Sources revealed that the FTC has issued a civil investigative demand to Instacart, seeking information about its Eversight pricing tool.

The software enables retailers on Instacart to test different prices using artificial intelligence. However, a recent study found that different shoppers were charged varying prices for the same groceries on the platform, sparking criticism.

The study, released Tuesday by progressive group Groundwork Collaborative, Consumer Reports, and news organization More Perfect Union, involved 437 shoppers across four cities who added identical items from the same retailer to their Instacart carts to check for price discrepancies. Results showed nearly 75% of tested products displayed different prices for different users. In comparisons of identical baskets from the same store, total price differences reached up to 7%. Groundwork estimated that if this gap persisted for a year, it could translate to an annual cost difference of approximately $1,200.

Instacart responded that only a small number of partner retailers conduct limited online pricing tests, emphasizing that these tests don't use personal, demographic, or individual behavioral data. The company stated prices also don't fluctuate based on supply-demand or real-time factors.

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