00:00The price you see on the shelf may not be the same by the time you get to the register,
00:04and may be a different price from someone else. Same store, same item, a different price for you
00:09specifically. So what is surveillance pricing and how does it affect your wallet? Here's what's
00:14happening. So you know how a pushy car salesman sizes you up before quoting you a price? Well,
00:19surveillance pricing is just that, but automated, invisible, and running across hundreds of stores
00:24all at once. Retailers collect your location, browsing history, purchase history, and even
00:29what you left in your cart without buying. The goal? Figure out how much you'd pay for an item
00:34and then charge it. In 2025, the FTC found 250 plus retailers already using outside companies like
00:41McKinsey, MasterCard, and JPMorgan Chase to run these systems. One example they flagged with online
00:46shopping was new parents getting shown higher priced baby thermometers at the top of their
00:50search results. How does it know? Well, they bought diapers last week and searched for formula the
00:54week before. The system decided a new parent with a sick baby probably isn't going to be shopping
00:58around. So you might be asking what runs all of this? Artificial intelligence. AI algorithms
01:03adjusting the price you see in real time. Walmart is putting electronic shelf labels in 2300 stores
01:10this year. They update remotely in seconds, meaning if the store knows who you are, your price could
01:15change before you even reach the register. Maryland has banned it in grocery stores and 20 plus other
01:21states are also working on a ban. But this week, Colorado's governor vetoed the strongest ban in the
01:26country calling it too broad. Consumer groups and state attorneys general call it price
01:31discrimination, using your own data against you. But supporters and retailers say that the system can
01:37lower prices too, offering discounts to shoppers the algorithm identifies as likely to walk away. So
01:42should this be banned federally right now? Or have we been handing over our information for so long
01:47that we only have ourselves to blame? Drop your take in the comments and follow us here for more.
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