Instacart shares plunge 11% on report that FTC is probing company over AI pricing tool
The FTC probes Instacart’s AI tool after a study found price differences up to 23% for identical groceries, raising questions about fairness in digital pricing.
- The FTC has issued a civil investigative demand to Instacart probing its AI pricing tool Eversight, Reuters reported December 17, 2025.
- A study found shoppers sometimes paid up to 23% more for identical groceries, with an average 7% cost difference across 437 shoppers in four cities, Groundwork Collaborative and others reported.
- The company notes Eversight allows retailers on Instacart to run AI price tests, which studies found to boost grocers' revenue by 1-3%.
- The agency cautioned that Instacart shares fell about 10% in after-hours trading, while the FTC said it was 'disturbed by what we have read in the press about Instacart’s alleged pricing practices'.
- Harvard Business School notes dynamic pricing is common on platforms like airlines, hotels and Uber, but policy and regulatory observers say AI-driven price testing of essentials raises concerns amid consumers facing high cost of living.
29 Articles
29 Articles
SF-Based Instacart Now Under FTC Investigation Over Their AI Price-Adjusting Tool
A recent study found Instacart was charging some shoppers up to 23% more for the same items from the same stores in an AI experiment, and now the Federal Trade Commission is looking into the matter.Last week, Consumer Reports and a team of other advocacy groups published an investigation into an AI-based “dynamic pricing” tool being used by the shopping platform Instacart. That AI pricing tool was charging some customers as much as 23% more for …
Federal regulators are ripping into Instacart after its AI pricing tool was found out doing this to drain your wallet
The Federal Trade Commission has officially sent Instacart a civil investigative demand, seeking crucial information about the company’s AI-powered pricing tool, as reported by Engadget. This regulatory move comes right after a recently published study showed some seriously questionable pricing practices that appear to be draining customers’ wallets. The study found that the online grocery delivery app was giving different users completely diffe…
FTC Investigates Instacart’s AI Pricing for User Data Manipulation
The Algorithmic Squeeze: How Instacart’s AI Pricing Sparked an FTC Showdown In the bustling world of online grocery delivery, where convenience meets cutting-edge technology, Instacart has long positioned itself as a innovator, leveraging artificial intelligence to streamline shopping experiences. But recent revelations about its AI-driven pricing mechanisms have thrust the company into the regulatory spotlight. Reports indicate that the U.S. Fe…
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