AI risks personalized pricing and consumer bot collusion, regulators warn

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has warned that artificial intelligence could enable retailers to implement highly granular personalized pricing. During a parliamentary inquiry, ACCC digital markets general manager David Abkiewicz noted that while different pricing for certain groups is not currently against Australian consumer law, there is concern that AI could use personal data to determine a consumer's maximum willingness to pay, potentially targeting vulnerable individuals.

Beyond pricing, the watchdog raised concerns regarding “agentic shopping,” where consumers use AI bots to shop on their behalf. There are fears these bots may have built-in brand preferences or could collude to steer shoppers away from the best deals. Additionally, the ACCC highlighted that AI is being used by scammers to automate and personalize fraudulent contact at scale.