Outrage Grows as Delta to Price Tickets Based on What AI Thinks You'll Pay

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Newsweek

Published Jul 22, 2025 at 10:24 AM EDT


Three U.S. senators are demanding answers over Delta Air Lines' planned expansion to use artificial intelligence to set individualized fares — insisting the strategy is fraught with privacy concerns.

Sens. Ruben Gallego, Richard Blumenthal and Mark Warner, all Democrats, sent a letter Monday to the Atlanta-based airline seeking additional details of plans to deploy AI-based revenue management technology across 20 percent of its domestic network in a matter of months.

"Individualized pricing, or surveillance-based price setting, eliminates a fixed or static price in favor of prices that are tailored to an individual consumer's willingness to pay," the senators wrote to Delta in a letter obtained by Newsweek.

"Delta's current and planned individualized pricing practices not only present data privacy concerns, but will also likely mean fare price increases up to each individual consumer's personal 'pain point' at a time when American families are already struggling with rising costs."

Read more: https://www.newsweek.com/senators-want-answers-delta-ai-powered-pricing-plan-2102358

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Link to Senator Gallego PRESS RELEASE - Gallego, Colleagues Demand Answers from Delta CEO as Company Moves Toward AI Pricing Model to Set Airfares

Link to LETTER (PDF) - https://www.gallego.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Delta-AI-Letter.pdf

[S/V Loner]

1. I guess the first thing it will look for is...

your credit score. High score…high ticket price. Assumption will be that you can afford it.

[creon]

2. AI is GIGO

What is in the AI program?

[Bernardo de La Paz]

16. What is in the AI program?

A whole bunch (often millions) of artificial neurons, their weights as an array, input and output arrays, perhaps some gating and some convolution filters, a training regimen.

I don't think you knew that.

As much as we can say AI is GIGO we can say child-rearing is GIGO, education is GIGO, and confirmation bias in DU posts is GIGO.

[Bread and Circuses]

3. Good Bye Delta. Do they think we're made out of Money

[hunter]

4. I'll fly for $50 an hour and free drinks.

I'm ready to go as soon as their check clears.

[iemanja]

5. This is supposed to be illegal

Amazon got in trouble for it a few years ago.

[Native]

15. exactly...you can't charge different people different prices for the same thing.

for example, if a company offers a senior discount, nonseniors who ask for those discounts have to legally be be given them. Business Law 101. This is called pricing discrimination, and it is illegal.

[24601]

21. Of course you can charge people different prices for the same product. Medicare does precisely that. When your Modified

Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) increases beyond set amounts, you are charged an Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount (IRMAA). There is no increased benefit, just an increased cost. And it's backdated two years.

https://www.edwardjones.com/us-en/market-news-insights/guidance-perspective/act-now-save-medicare-later

[Native]

25. i'm talking about retailers. the government has its own set of rules.

[24601]

32. OK - retailers. Most groceries have an affinity plan. When you join the plan, you receive a lower price on many items.

While that sounds benign, they then use the collected data to target their advertising aimed at you. Some grocery stores sell your information to third parties, allowing others to target you. In either case, they sell the same product for different prices based on who you are.

When I book a hotel, there are usually special categories of people who are offered lower rates. Those most often include members of their affinity plan, AAA members, Seniors, Active and Retired Military and their families, Government personnel and/or Contractors on Official Business, and Travel Agents.

When I buy gas, I notice many stations offer discounts for those who pay in cash or use a debit card. Credit card users have a higher per-gallon price.

When we bought a home, our interest rate was based on our credit rating. People with higher credit scores receive lower interest rates.

Regarding Delta, if they use AI to set your price, the solution is to use an anonymous browser when searching for & purchasing tickets.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

35. Exactly

If it were illegal, just about every major retailer in the country would be facing lawsuits over senior & military discounts.

Hell, the federal government basically demands price discrimination for travel - flights and hotel rates for official travel are usually quite a bit below what the general public would have to pay for the same service.

[DrFunkenstein]

42. Discounts are voluntary, this is is INVOLUNTARY data collection

And to address the other comment, how the hell are you going to pay anonymously for a plane ticket? I think terrorists have been working on that problem for years now, but you still have to identify yourself when flying.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

43. I agree that the dynamic pricing model...

…is awful, and I’m hopeful that Congress will put a stop to it.

I was simply addressing the incorrect claim that it’s illegal to charge different prices to different people for the same item/service.

No idea what you’re talking about re:buying plane tickets anonymously.

[24601]

45. You're right. I travelled frequently on official business. GSA contracts city pair (e.g. Tampa - San Antonio) fares

annually. We were typically allowed to book a different airline if the contracted city pair flight was unavailable on the date we needed to fly.

https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-a-trip/transportation-airfare-rates-pov-rates-etc/airfare-rates-city-pair-program

Hotels aren't locked in like airline fares. Most have multiple rates, and the prices for official business usually reflect an area's per diem reimbursement.

Most federal government travel falls under the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR). An exception is that Department of Defense travel falls under the Joint Travel Regulation. Whenever DoD has a rule that parallels the rest of the federal government, it's never to be more generous to uniformed military personnel and DoD civilians.

[Native]

37. Think discrimination....

a loyalty plan that anyone can join is cool, as is offering a cash discount that is available to anyone who chooses to pay cash, and anyone can work to improve their credit score .... none of this is discrimination. If you offer a white person a discount, but exclude brown or black people, that's race and price discrimination. Establishments have gotten in trouble for offering ladies night discounts (sex discrimination). There are a lot of components to this, and a lot of different laws. It's murky as hell, and everyone tries to find the loopholes. Also, you typically have to show you're potentially damaging the competition. What Delta is proposing to do is crossing the line according to experts.

[intrepidity]

22. Are you sure?

How do I ask for such a discount, and what do I say when they decline? (eg, around here they offer discounts to military, which I am not, and say you need to show ID)

[Native]

29. There are a lot of components to this...

state laws, federal laws, civil rights laws...it's very complicated. Price discrimination is regulated in many ways...
but no one is going to take Dunkin Donuts to court because they are giving seniors and the military 10% off a donut and coffee, simply because it's not harming their competitors.

That said, years ago, one of our chain stores was offering a very significant discount for seniors on a certain day at a certain time, and I contacted corporate and complained (I wasn't eligible), and they sent me a letter that I could produce at the local store to qualify for that discount. Shortly thereafter they discontinued it, and changed it to a standard senior discount that was nominal.

If DELTA pulls this off, I'll be very surprised. Dynamic pricing is bad enough, but this is definitely over the line.

While military and senior discounts are price discrimination, they've been acceptable for a long time because they are generally so small they aren't causing any harm. Price discrimination based on sex (ladies' nights) or race are more problematic because of civil rights laws.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

34. Yes you can

Price discrimination is only illegal in limited circumstances, such as if it impedes competition.

[Jose Garcia]

46. AMC Theaters charges less for a senior ticket than for an adult ticket

[SickOfTheOnePct]

33. It's not illegal n/t

[Marthe48]

6. Zero

I will pay zero to fly with delta

[SickOfTheOnePct]

36. I fly American Airlines...

...almost exclusively. The only time I use Delta or United is if I'm on official travel and have to use them, or in a situation where I have to be somewhere right away and Delta/United will get me there faster, which is rare.

DCA is my closest airport, and there is almost nowhere I can't fly to using American.

[Marthe48]

38. I'll keep that in mind when I travel again

There is a regional airport about 20 minutes from me. The last time I traveled, I flew a Contour (AA) shuttle from there to Charlotte and picked up a flight to Maine. I realized I can do the same and fly anywhere if I get to go again. They offer free parking, too.

I like the arrangement because I can drive myself to the airport and the kids don't stress. If I use Columbus, Cleveland, or Pittsburgh, they want to drive me there and back. Which is wonderful, but if I can do it myself, even better

[SickOfTheOnePct]

39. Yeah, Charlotte is a hub for American Airlines...

...so from there, you can go just about anywhere.

I will note that I hate Charlotte Airport, not for the airport itself, but for the way American is set up there. When they bought out USAirways years ago, they took their gate slots, which are on the opposite end of the airport from the old American gates. They've broken it out so that the smaller commuter planes land at one end of the airport, and the larger long-haul planes are on the opposite end.

I had to make a connection once, and my flight was showing as "Boarding" as we landed...when I got off the plane, there was a sign saying it was a 17 minute walk to my connecting flight. I made it, barely, and was the last person to board.

That experience kind of soured me on Charlotte

[Marthe48]

41. I hear you!

My last travel was a couple of years ago, to Maine, the first week of July. I had all of my flights arranged (I do like it when the kids do that for me) But AA wouldn't confirm my seat from Charlotte to Bangor. When my shuttle landed, my daughter had arranged for a wheel chair for me, and the guy who wheeled it drove like he was on I-95, so I got to the gate in plenty of time, but my seat was still not confirmed. Several people were waiting at the desk to get their seats confirmed, so I hovered there, too. No one was at the desk, and with the boarding time getting closer, we were getting antsy. A flight attendant came to the gate and sat down with her lunch. One of the other people in line started talking to her and wondered how they could get their flight confirmed. The attendant said that AA purposely overbooked (at least that flight) because they knew at least half the people wouldn't get from the shuttle gate to the next gate. I got on the plane, but I thought it sucked that there was so much suspense waiting, and the company did it on purpose.

I'm retired, with a flexible schedule. I think any travel would be harder if you have to be at an airport, or a gate, at a certain time.

[Karasu]

7. This is end-stage capitalism. There is nothing left beyond it. It is greed in its purest, most inhuman form and needs to

Last edited Tue Jul 22, 2025, 09:54 PM - Edit history (1)

be nipped in the bud NOW.

Or very soon, this model is going to be applied to fucking everything. The tiny shred of "humanity" still left in capitalism will be completely fucking gone.

[SoFlaBro]

8. Robert Reich profiled this fucking shitty MAGA bot fuck shit with AI based pricing models

[EarthFirst]

9. So if a loved one who was rushed to a neuro ICU...

AI would know that without hesitation they would spend $800 on a same day cross-country flight to be with them; would surely would pay $1050 and return queries for flights at the higher price point…

Of course; that’s never what they’ll admit; but who would know?

[Bernardo de La Paz]

17. 1) AI would not know of ICU situation, 2) Same day flights at higher pricing is as old as airlines. . . . nt

[Hornedfrog2000]

18. How do you know???

Lol. You dont. They know where we go, who our family is, what we buy, eat, etc. They literally advertise to pregnant mothers they need lotions for stretch marks early, or that you are going to need formula and dipers towards the end of your pregnancy.

You do not know.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

19. The example given was an emergency, immediately. They would not know. No data

Able gets a phone call from his sister Baker and ten minutes later searches for a same day flight to Charleston. No connection to a transient ischemic attack in someone's brain.

The airline pricing is not done by super-sophisticated tracking with dozens or hundreds of online "partners" even though they have dozens or hundreds of online partners. It is done simply by things like Able looks at prices for a flight and after a pause of ten minutes is back on the site looking for seating availability.

Your point is well taken for ordinary events, long duration events. But it does require people giving them data. Not everyone gives them data.

[intrepidity]

24. I think the point was not what AI knows

but that the person was willing to pay a higher price due to mitigating circumstances, and so will be considered a soft mark for future tix prices.

[msongs]

10. on demand pricing. price of beans from cart to checkout goes from 99 cents to 1.29

just during the short walk to the counter.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

11. My November flight to JAX is already paid for.

Since my husband died, I have NO credit rating as I had to close our CC accounts.

I will not be choosing Delta in the future. I have a trip planned in January to Hawaii that is paid for that I had to cancel. That is with Southwest. Of course, the baggage fees will be added.

[dlk]

12. What a bizarre concept

Dreaming up new and novel ways to wring every last dollar from their customers. I would never fly on such an airline, ever!

[dobleremolque]

13. No wonder the politicians are alarmed. What if the corporate world

figures out how to apply this AI technology to campaign contributions? But in reverse.... as in, how little can they give to bend any particular politician to the will of the oligarchy?

Edited to add: This isn't really a new concept. It's been applied to taxation for centuries. Jean Baptiste Colbert, finance minister to King Louis XIV of France is credited with saying that: "The art of taxation consists of so plucking the goose as to acquire the greatest amount of feathers with the least amount of hissing."

[FakeNoose]

14. It's the "convenience fee" for shopping online and paying by credit card

Nobody would be charged this if they went to the airport and bought tickets directly from the airline. Or by going to an old-style travel agent and booking the trip. We've become lazy, letting our phones handle everything, and that's how AI apps can easily calculate how much we're willing to pay.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

40. The vast majority of people...

…have zero interest (and haven’t in decades) in going to the airport to buy a ticket. It’s a time suck and if same day, most likely a money suck .

I much prefer to book my own flights rather than using a travel agent because then I own the reservation - if I need to make changes, I can do so without going through a travel agent.

Since most of my travel is planned months in advance, I’m able to get good prices. Plus, booking through my credit card company, if the price on the flight goes down, I’m reimbursed.

Having said that, of course I’m 100% against the model Delta is looking at.

[Torchlight]

20. I think this kind of model will become increasingly common

as technology continues to evolve and meet the needs of typical retail operators. If platforms support it, I wouldn’t be surprised to see AI-driven pricing become as widespread as electronic payment systems.

Honestly, when I was growing up, I imagined a future full of flying cars—not surveillance-based pricing, QR codes, and constant multi-step authentication. But here we are… and tomorrow just keeps getting stranger.

[intrepidity]

23. So I can get cheaper stuff too, right?

Logically, this should be a way for the wealthy to subsidize the poor, because the wealthy can afford higher prices, right?

But we all know it won't work that way ... for reasons.

[BeyondGeography]

26. This country is getting so dark

More and more people are going to fly away and hardly ever (or never) come back.

[Turbineguy]

27. We cheat all the others and pass the savings on to you!

[Ritabert]

28. Haven't flown in years and am not going to start

[Midnight Writer]

30. Next: How much are you willing to pay for a banana?

This is our future.

Unless we stop it.

[Blackjackdavey]

31. The Irony

They can do this when we shop but just can't figure it out with income taxes? Gotta love it.

[Oopsie Daisy]

44. I'd heard (or read) that flight prices would vary depending on someone's IP address *

* which would reveal their country and/or region. Apparently, the same exact flight costs less for people who book it using a UK or German IP address (by way of a VPN choice) compared to someone whose IP address was inside the US.

Is that still true?