Lindsay Owens, the executive director of Groundwork Collaborative, summed up her fears about Google’s AI-enabled shopping protocol on Twitter. Her viral thread on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has led to almost 400,000 views. Her comments explore what this means for consumers as tech companies continue to layer artificial intelligence into their products and services. This post has sparked a renewed interest in closing these corporate practices that harm consumer protection and tools in our constantly changing digital market place.
Owens’ post highlights her apprehension about Google’s approach to handling user consent and data privacy within its shopping framework. She cites specific language from Google’s technical documents, which state, “The scope complexity should be hidden in the consent screen shown to the user.” This lack of transparency raises serious questions about the state of transparency. Keeping consumers in the dark about how their data is used.
In response to the issues raised by Owens, Google waved her complaints away as a “nothingburger.” The tech behemoth even claimed that it follows very precise standards and procedures to keep customers safe during a shopping journey. Google explicitly stated that merchants are not allowed to display inflated prices on its platform compared to what they sell a product for on their own website. Further, the company explained its process for “upselling” customers.
“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 term ‘upselling’ is not about overcharging. It’s a standard way for retailers to show additional premium product options that people might be interested in. The choice is always with the user on what to buy.” – Google
In her blog post, Owens railed against many of these practices in the strongest possible terms. She expressed her concerns for Google’s plans to sift through user chat data to enhance their shopping personalization. She says this could lead to consumers being charged more than they should.
“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.” – Lindsay Owens
The weight of Owens’ findings go beyond the debate at hand right now. This past year, we applauded a federal court’s decision to hold Google accountable for its anticompetitive conduct. In return, the company stopped the offending business practices and uncapped exclusive search contracts. Regardless of what happens with this ruling, it has increased scrutiny on how Google’s operations affect consumers and competition.
Owens’ post opens the door to an important discussion. Technology companies are under increasing scrutiny to set transparent and equitable norms in their relationships with consumers. As tech companies such as Google continue to develop new, powerful AI systems, accountability, transparency, and ethical use of technology is critical.
The fight against Google’s practices is getting hot. At the same time, TechCrunch is planning a massive event of their own in San Francisco on October 13-15, 2026, bringing thousands of attendees together to engage with these important tech and consumer rights topics.
Conversations around innovation and consumer protection are ongoing. To prevent the next tragedy, we will have to keep a focus on Lindsay Owens’ important insights and continue to be vigilant in the digital age. The integration of AI into everyday practices necessitates a thorough examination of how these technologies can both benefit and potentially harm consumers.