Taking a summer road trip used to be one of my favorite things to do. Not anymore. With gas prices skyrocketing, driving across the state, let alone the country, is no longer affordable.While gas prices have generally risen because of the Iran war and other supply-chain issues, other factors may be at play.A lawsuit alleges that Walmart, Albertsons, and other retailers may have contributed to gas price increases in a not-so-consumer-friendly way.The story of rising gas pricesGas prices have been hovering around $2.99 a gallon, according to Trading Economics. While that’s a dip from a few months ago, when prices were at $3.74 a gallon, it’s still high compared to 2025, when prices were at just over $2.00 a gallon.That’s also just the average price across the nation, as prices vary by state. According to Forbes, West Coast states tend to have some of the highest gas prices, with states like California, Washington, and Hawaii reaching over $5 a gallon. Oil and gas prices are also influenced by trading on commodity exchanges, which depends on factors such as the U.S. dollar, geopolitical events, and production quotas.But a recent lawsuit filed in California contends that several retailers have been using AI to inflate prices and bypass standard competition practices.
A lawsuit alleges that a surge in gas prices may have been worsened by the use of AI.Getty Images
AI-driven gas pricing may have violatedantitrust law According to court documents, one of the core causes of high fuel costs in California is retailers’ use of an AI pricing system that fixes prices.The lawsuit alleges that AI algorithmic pricing firm Kalibrate connects directly to gas stations and, instead of lowering prices to attract drivers, uses data from competing companies to inflate prices.More retail60-year-old retailer closes over 240 locations across 35 statesRetail giant exits U.S. fashion after multi-million-dollar scandal79-year-old fast-fashion retailer closes 128 stores“While families struggle to afford the commute to work, Defendants have conspired to put an end to competition, joining an AI-powered trust to ensure that no matter where a driver turns, the price for gasoline is artificially high,” the court document states.In other words, by using Kalibrate, retailers allegedly violated fair competition rules and California antitrust laws.Retailers that used Kalibrate and are named in gas price lawsuitThe list of retailers named in the lawsuit includes the following, among others.WalmartSam’s ClubAlbertsonsCircle KMarathon7-ElevenSpeedwayEG AmericaBPTravelCentersThe lawsuit is one of the first to reference AB 325, a California law passed in 2025 that prohibits shared pricing algorithms.The lawsuit claims that the named gas retailers “have replaced independent, competitive pricing with a coordinated, automated mechanism that relies on sensitive competitor data and a conscious decision to ensure that prices remain artificially high,” which is explicitly forbidden under the law.The class action lawsuit seeks a jury trial and damages for drivers in the state who, it claims, overpaid for gas at more than 1,700 gas stations in California.The lawsuit says gas station owners inflated prices by as much as 22 cents a gallon and as much as 33 cents for diesel, costing California drivers $134 million a year.Walmart owns about 450 gas stations around the country, according to Emarketer, while Albertsons has 402 fuel stations, according to CSP Daily News.Related: Kroger just shook up the supermarket landscape