By admin 
A new lawsuit filed on Monday in Sacramento, California, proposed as a class action, accuses BP, 7-Eleven, Walmart, Albertsons, and other gas station chains operating in California—along with a software platform—of using AI to “coordinate high prices and wring more money from the pockets of consumers,” according to Reuters, who reviewed the suit.
Read more Feds Say a Darknet Dealer Called ‘DaddyBiden’ Sold Fake Adderall Laced with Meth
Reuters says the software in question is Kalibrate, one of the defendants, and a company whose website says it has “been removing the guesswork and adding certainty to organizations’ biggest decisions for decades,” and that it offers, “Market-leading AI, analytics, and modeling.”
In California, using AI to collaboratively set prices could be the basis for a valid lawsuit. Elsewhere, it might not be.
That’s because a 2025 amendment to a California’s primary antitrust law makes algorithmic price fixing illegal. Specifically, no one may “use or distribute a common pricing algorithm as part of a contract, combination in the form of a trust, or conspiracy to restrain trade or commerce[…]”
Read more Oracle Cuts 21,000 Jobs in One Year, Blames AI For at Least Some
And what exactly is a “pricing algorithm”? California law defines it as “any methodology, including a computer, software, or other technology, used by two or more persons, that uses competitor data to recommend, align, stabilize, set, or otherwise influence a price or commercial term.”
That amendment took effect on January 1 of this year.
Reuters says the plaintiffs in the suit are “California drivers.”
Gizmodo sought comment from Kalibrate, BP, 7-Eleven, Walmart, and Albertsons, but did not immediately receive replies. We will update this article if we hear back.
Read more WhatsApp Is Getting A New CEO From The Fintech World