up to 23% price variance per item
Instacart used its Eversight AI pricing-test software (acquired 2022) to let retailers show different shoppers different prices for the same grocery items in the same store at the same time — with price variance as high as 23% on individual items and basket totals differing by about 7% on average. An investigation by Consumer Reports and Groundwork Collaborative documented this practice; Instacart halted the AI price-testing program in December 2025 after regulatory scrutiny and public backlash. When asked whether Ontario would follow Manitoba's lead and ban this kind of surveillance pricing outright, Premier Doug Ford said he would not, citing his belief in the 'free market,' leaving Instacart's practice (and similar retailer/platform pricing tools) unregulated in Ontario.