Instacart algorithm prices same products differently between customers, CR says

According to an investigation by Consumer Reports’ Derek Kravitz with Groundwork Collaborative, Instacart’s (CART) AI-powered algorithmic pricing experiment appears to have priced identical products differently from one customer to the next, sometimes by as much as 23%. Such pricing experiments had occurred through the platform at several major grocery retailers in the U.S., including Alberstons (ACI), Costco (COST), Kroger (KR), Safeway, Sprouts (SFM), and Target (TGT), Kravitz says, noting that algorithmic pricing is typically invisible to consumers, who usually only see the prices and fees they’re offered.