Amazon and Walmart AI shopping assistants can often detect when "Made in USA" product labels are false, but the big retailers are not using that technology to crack down on the listings, according to a new study from a think tank led by a former chair of the US Federal Trade Commission, Lina Khan.
The study resurfaces questions about AI shopping assistants' mixed incentives, as retailers see the technology as a way to boost spend.
Amazon's Alexa for Shopping and Walmart's Sparky shopping assistants are capable of detecting mismatches between explicit "made in USA" claims and contradictory information in product listings, the study's authors wrote.
When the AI bots are queried on why the companies are not doing more to combat the false labelling, the AI-driven chatbots have cited business justifications.
When researchers asked Walmart's Sparky why it does not flag suspicious "made in USA" claims, it responded that the FTC typically enforces "made in USA" rules against manufacturers, not retailers.
