Fast-food giants and supermarkets are rolling out a range of AI tools that could affect the prices shoppers pay, but experts warn the spread of data-driven tools could make personalized pricing easier to deploy.
Just this week, a federal antitrust lawsuit filed against McDonald's alleged the fast food giant uses an AI-powered "pricing engine" to set menu prices across U.S. locations and overcharge customers for Big Macs and fries.
McDonald's has denied that it's using AI to determine what individual customers are willing to pay and said it provides its franchisees with "tools, resources, research and recommendations to help them make informed decisions."
Even so, food businesses globally are increasingly digitizing operations with AI. Earlier this year, American grocery chain Kroger said it's using an AI platform called FlashFood to mark down perishables nearing the end of their shelf life and marketing them to shoppers via an app.
Meanwhile, electronic shelf labels (ESLs), which display the price of items in store on digital screens, are becoming increasingly popular at supermarkets like Kroger, Amazon Fresh, Walmart, and Whole Foods.