Walmart is trying to calm customer fears as it expands digital price labels across its stores.
In a statement on its website, CEO John Furner said the Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer is not using personal information such as income, shopping history or a customer’s willingness to pay to set prices, and will not do so in the future.
'We don’t set different prices based on who you are or the time of day, and we won’t,' Furner wrote Friday. 'Whether you’re buying groceries or electronics on a hot afternoon or in a sudden rush for an item, it’s never a reason to charge you more.'
Furner also said Walmart’s AI shopping assistant, Sparky, is bound by the same promise. He said the bot will not be used to raise a customer’s price or hide lower-priced options that meet their needs.
The company said those practices would violate its 'every day low prices' business model.
The pledge comes as concerns rise among some shoppers, consumer advocates and lawmakers over digital price labels, which are rapidly replacing paper shelf tags at U.S. supermarkets. The labels allow stores to change prices instantly from a central computer instead of having workers swap out paper tags by hand.
Walmart executives have repeatedly said the electronic shelf tags help the retailer change prices consistently and match what rings up at checkout. They also said the system saves workers time and reduces labor costs by replacing paper tags.
Walmart said in March that 2,300 Walmart U.S. locations already use digital shelves, and it expects the technology to be chain-wide within the next year.
Furner said prices can still change. Walmart lowers them when it can pass savings along, and sometimes raises them because an item costs more to buy or transport.
The issue has drawn fresh scrutiny after the Federal Trade Commission said last month that it is putting companies on notice that personalized pricing could violate consumer protection laws. The agency said it does not have the legal authority to ban personalized pricing in all circumstances, but it issued a bulletin warning companies that they must disclose how personal information is being used to set a price.
The numbers come first. Walmart’s pitch is straightforward: digital labels are meant to improve accuracy, speed and labor efficiency, not to create a higher bill for the customer. For shoppers, the real test is whether a system controlled from a central computer stays a tool for matching prices or becomes a lever for market power.
Capital rewards clear rules. If Walmart keeps its promise, it can defend a model built on volume, low margins and trust. If it doesn’t, the taxpayer and consumer advocates will keep pressing for disclosures, and regulators will keep looking for signs that new technology is being used to squeeze the buyer instead of serving the market.
