A Consumer Watchdog Issued a Warning About Google’s AI Agent Shopping Protocol — Google Says She’s Wrong

Shortly after Google announced its new Universal Commerce Protocol for AI-powered shopping agents, a consumer economics watchdog raised concerns about its potential impact on consumers.

In a now-viral post on X viewed nearly 400,000 times, Lindsay Owens wrote on Sunday, “Big/bad news for consumers. Google is out today with an announcement of how they plan to integrate shopping into their AI offerings including search and Gemini. The plan includes ‘personalized upselling.’ I.e. Analyzing your chat data and using it to overcharge you.”

Big/bad news for consumers. Google is out today with an announcement of how they plan to integrate shopping into their AI offerings including search and Gemini. The plan includes “personalized upselling.” I.e. Analyzing your chat data and using it to overcharge you. 1/2 https://t.co/Txh6Im73YE pic.twitter.com/AqDYxSgjk5 — Lindsay Owens (@owenslindsay1) January 11, 2026

Owens is the executive director of the consumer economics think tank Groundwork Collaborative. Her concerns stem from reviewing Google’s published roadmap and detailed technical specification documents. The roadmap includes a feature designed to support “upselling,” which could allow merchants to promote higher-priced items to AI-powered shopping agents.

🧵Google’s building an NSA for capitalism.

By merging search history, conversational AI, and retailer data, their new 'Universal Commerce Protocol' could create the ultimate surveillance pricing squeeze. But instead of national security, the goal is extracting 'maximum lifetime… pic.twitter.com/TLYte88JRG — Lindsay Owens (@owenslindsay1) January 12, 2026

She also flagged Google’s plans to adjust pricing for programs such as new-member discounts and loyalty-based pricing—an approach Sundar Pichai described when he announced the protocol at the National Retail Federation conference.

In a post on X, Google stated, “These claims around pricing are inaccurate. We strictly prohibit merchants from showing prices on Google that are higher than what is reflected on their site, period.” The company added that the term “upselling” does not refer to overcharging, but to the standard retail practice of presenting premium product options that users may be interested in. According to Google, purchasing decisions remain entirely with the user. The company also said its “Direct Offers” pilot enables merchants to offer lower-priced deals or add-on services, such as free shipping, and cannot be used to raise prices.

These claims around pricing are inaccurate. We strictly prohibit merchants from showing prices on Google that are higher than what is reflected on their site, period.
1/ The term “upselling” is not about overcharging. It’s a standard way for retailers to show additional premium… — News from Google (@NewsFromGoogle) January 12, 2026

In a separate conversation with TechCrunch, a Google spokesperson said that Google’s Business Agent does not include functionality that would allow retailers to adjust pricing based on individual user data.

Owens also cited language in Google’s technical documentation on shopper identity management, stating that “the scope complexity should be hidden in the consent screen shown to the user.” Google responded that this phrasing refers to simplifying the consent experience by consolidating multiple actions—such as creating, updating, cancelling, or completing a transaction—rather than requiring users to approve each step individually.

Even if Google’s assurances are correct, Owens argues that the broader issue remains worth examining. She warns that AI shopping agents developed by large technology companies could eventually enable merchants to customize prices based on what they believe consumers are willing to pay, using insights derived from AI conversations and shopping behaviour. She refers to this potential practice as “surveillance pricing.”

Although Google says its agents are not capable of such behaviour today, the company’s core business model centres on advertising and serving merchants. Last year, a federal court ordered Google to change several of its search business practices after finding that the company engaged in anticompetitive behaviour.

While many consumers are enthusiastic about the prospect of AI agents handling everyday tasks—such as rescheduling appointments or researching household purchases—the potential for misuse is clear. The technology companies best positioned to build advanced shopping agents also face conflicting incentives, as their businesses depend on merchant relationships and on collecting consumer data.

This dynamic may create opportunities for startups developing independent AI shopping tools. Early examples include Dupe, which uses natural language queries to help users find affordable furniture, and Beni, which combines image and text search to support secondhand fashion shopping.

For now, the longstanding warning to consumers still applies: buyer beware.