U.S. consumers aren’t just frustrated with high prices.
asserted
consumers → frustrate → prices
They’re angry and confused about the increasingly high-tech ways that restaurant chains and major retailers are setting those prices.
asserted
chains → ’re → prices
Digital price tags are rapidly replacing paper ones in grocery aisles.
asserted
tags → replace → aisles
Artificial intelligence tools help businesses decide what to charge by predicting how customers might respond.
uncertain
customers → help → what
Terms like “dynamic pricing” and “surveillance pricing” are stirring anxiety on social media, where users wonder if different people are getting different prices for the same product.
asserted
people → stir → product
Americans have grown accustomed to changing prices when booking flights, hotel rooms and rides, but the prospect of everyday spending shaped by algorithms they don’t understand and personal data they may not realize they’re sharing has touched a nerve.
uncertain
they → grow → nerve
“There are major tensions happening right now between who’s really going to have the power with some of these algorithms and usage of bots and AI: the companies or the shopper,” said Katie Thomas, who leads an internal consumer behavior think tank at the management consulting firm Kearney.
asserted
who → be → firm
Companies using the technology say some concerns stem from misconceptions about how their pricing tools work.
asserted
tools → use → misconceptions
Walmart CEO John Furner said in a blog post last month that digital price tags save workers’ time and keep prices up to date.
asserted
tags → say → date
He said the labels aren’t used to raise prices based on the weather, time of day or individual shopper.
asserted
labels → say → day
“We price the product, not the person,” Furner wrote.
asserted
Furner → price → product
But companies aren’t always transparent about the customer data they collect and how it’s used, which has made consumers suspicious and led to speculation.
asserted
consumers → collect → speculation
For example, social media posts falsely imply that electronic shelf labels Walmart plans to put in all its U.S. stores scan shoppers’ faces or cellphones to set individualized prices, Thomas said.
asserted
Thomas → imply → prices
Lawmakers and regulators are taking action.
asserted
Lawmakers → take → action
Legislators in at least 30 states have considered pricing bills this year, including measures addressing algorithmic and personalized pricing, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
uncertain
Legislators → consider → Legislatures
The Federal Trade Commission has proposed an enforcement policy warning businesses that failing to disclose their use of personal data to set individualized prices could violate consumer protection law.
uncertain
failing → propose → law
Here are some of the pricing practices and technologies drawing scrutiny.
asserted
some → draw → scrutiny
Dynamic pricing can raise and lower prices
What it is: Dynamic pricing means adjusting prices in response to changing market conditions, including supply and demand.
asserted
pricing → raise → supply
An airline that adjusts ticket prices as departures approach is using dynamic pricing.
asserted
departures → adjust → pricing
Uber’s practice of lifting fares when demand outstrips the supply of available drivers, such as during rush hour, is a type of dynamic pricing known as surge pricing.
asserted
demand → lift → pricing
Why it matters: Frequent price changes extend well beyond food.
asserted
changes → matter → food
Decodo, a web data company, tracked price changes in 2025 across products ranging from electronics to clothing and home improvement supplies.
asserted
Decodo → track → clothing
About half the U.S. changes it recorded were decreases, contrary to consumers’ assumptions that dynamic pricing only raises prices, said Gabriele Vitke, a senior product marketing manager.
asserted
Vitke → record → prices
Digital price labels are coming to more US stores
What they are: Digital displays that let stores update shelf prices electronically instead of replacing paper tags.
Why it matters:
asserted
it → come → tags
Digital price labels, long used in Europe and Asia, are drawing more attention as they spread to major U.S. retailers like Walmart and Whole Foods.
asserted
they → use → Walmart
Consumer advocates have argued that digital labels could eventually be used for surge pricing or personalized pricing.
uncertain
labels → argue → pricing
Labor unions also have opposed the technology.
asserted
unions → oppose → technology
The electronic shelf labels make frequent changes easier but don’t necessarily lead to higher prices during periods of strong demand.
asserted
changes → make → demand
Retailers typically update electronic shelf prices on a regular schedule, often weekly, because shoppers value consistency, said Asa Farquhar of Relex Solutions, a retail technology company.
asserted
Farquhar → update → Solutions
Researchers who tracked prices at an unnamed grocery chain found “virtually no surge pricing” after the labels were introduced.
“Changing prices throughout the day, the way airlines or rideshare apps do, is exceedingly rare in grocery and general merchandise today,” Farquhar said.
asserted
Farquhar → track → merchandise
Personalized pricing, also called surveillance pricing, draws on customer data
What it is: Personalized pricing means offering customers different prices and discounts based on their locations, incomes, web-browsing habits and other information about individuals or groups of shoppers.
asserted
pricing → call → shoppers
Some advocacy groups and regulators use the term “surveillance pricing” for the same practice.
asserted
groups → use → practice
Why it matters:
asserted
it → matter → ?
It’s unclear how widely businesses use personal information to customize prices.
uncertain
businesses → ’ → prices
An FTC staff report released in January 2025 found that intermediaries offering tools that can tailor prices and promotions worked with at least 250 clients, including grocery and clothing retailers.
asserted
that → release → retailers
Lawmakers in Maryland, New Jersey and Connecticut recently enacted restrictions on using shoppers’ personal data to determine what they pay.
asserted
they → enact → what
The Maryland and New Jersey laws focus on groceries, with exceptions for certain loyalty discounts and other promotional offers.
asserted
laws → focus → discounts
Connecticut’s legislation covers a broader range of retail purchases.
asserted
legislation → cover → purchases
California prosecutors sued Target in 2022, alleging that the retailer’s app displayed lower prices before shoppers entered stores and raised them once they were inside.
asserted
they → sue → them
Target agreed to a $5 million settlement and a ban on using so-called geofencing technology to increase prices.
asserted
Target → agree → prices
…and 24 more, not listed.
The Aporia
