California Sues Oil and Retail Giants Over AI Price Coordination

A June 2026 lawsuit alleges that BP, Marathon, 7-Eleven, Walmart, and others used similar AI pricing tools to raise gas prices by up to 22 cents per gallon. The legal puzzle: does using the same algorithm without talking count as illegal price-fixing? U.S. courts haven't decided. The outcome could reshape how retailers use automated pricing across all sectors.