Amazon Walmart AI spot false Made in USA labels, do not flag

A new study published on July 30, 2026, by Columbia Law School's Center for Law and the Economy finds that artificial intelligence shopping assistants used by Amazon and Walmart can detect false "Made in USA" product labels, but the retailers are not deploying this capability to remove misleading listings. The research, led by former Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan, raises concerns about how business incentives are shaping the use of increasingly sophisticated AI tools in online marketplaces.

Researchers tested Amazon's Alexa for Shopping and Walmart's Sparky chatbot, concluding both systems can identify discrepancies between explicit "Made in USA" claims and contradictory country-of-origin information found elsewhere in the same product listing. The study also indicates that such misleading labeling appears to be common on both platforms. When the AI assistants were asked why their parent companies do not act on these detected inconsistencies, they pointed to business rationales rather than technical limitations.

According to the study, Amazon's Alexa stated that "the harm to U.S.-made brands is real and documented, but until that harm creates a financial, regulatory,...