Algorithmic Pricing

Have you ever shopped around online for plane tickets or hotels in order to plan against your travel budget? And then when you return to a website to make your final purchase, you discover that the prices have mysteriously increased? That’s algorithmic pricing at work. They’ve detected that you’ve come back to look again, and they’ve increased their prices to lure into making a purchase before the prices increase again.

This tactic has been around for quite a while.

But it’s now ramping up to become even more prevalent and powerful, thanks to AI.

It’s insidious and invasive, as the latest AI schemes dig pretty deep into your personal information. AI algorithms are looking at your location, income level, demographics (age, race, etc.), purchase and shopping history, search behavior and even facial recognition identifiers to dynamically target you with customized ads and pricing.

On November 10, 2025, New York's Algorithmic Pricing Disclosure Act, a first-of-its-kind statute in the U.S., took effect. The Act requires companies that use algorithmic pricing based on consumers' personal data to display a clear and immediate disclosure, stating: "THIS PRICE WAS SET BY AN ALGORITHM USING YOUR PERSONAL DATA." Companies that fail to do this may face civil penalties of up to $1,000 for each violation.

It seems like a good thing for New Yorkers, and maybe it will set a precedent for other States.

But it feels like it's placing the cart (no pun intended) before the horse. Meaning: Laws that simply alert us to violations of our freedoms do not address the fact that our freedoms are being violated in the first place.