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Delta moves toward eliminating set prices in favor of AI that determines how much you personally will pay for a ticket (fortune.com)
submitted 1 year ago by to c/technology@lemmy.world
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Delta has a long-term strategy to boost its profitability by moving away from set fares and toward individualized pricing using AI. The pilot program, which uses AI for 3% of fares, has so far been “amazingly favorable,” the airline said. Privacy advocates fear this will lead to price-gouging, with one consumer advocate comparing the tactic to “hacking our brains.”

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[–] 45 points 1 year ago (9 children)

I have an idea for a business: a browser with vpn. the catch is that the vpn connects to the poorest areas of the country you live in, and the browser reports your machine as the most crappy thing that can browse the web - which should result in low, low prices everywhere!

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  • [–] 46 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (4 children)

    the catch is that the vpn connects to the poorest areas of the country you live in

    A common mistake.

    The High Price of Being Poor

    You're going to get a worse deal if the airline thinks you're not going to be a repeat customer or part of a larger network of frequent fliers. The customers who get the best deals are the ones that airlines believe they will be able to collect money from routinely. If they have you pegged as someone who will only ever buy a ticket once or twice in their lives, they're going to try and sell you the worst possible seat at the highest possible price.

    What you can expect as a poor buyer is debt-financing, bait-and-switch, and the worst kind of economy service at the highest marginal price point. Budget airline travel is miserable and AI isn't going to make the experience any better.

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  • [–] 12 points 1 year ago (3 children)

    That's a good argument, so probably the location should be in a pretty high COL suburb, maybe a gated community.

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  • [–] 11 points 1 year ago* (2 children)

    I suspect the AI is going to be more interested in your history with Delta (frequent flyer status) and the fanciness of your credit card than your zip code. Age, employment status, and race/gender/number of social connections will also likely factor in.

    Great time to be in the "Influencer" business, but I wouldn't want to be a member of a marginalized group (dark skin, poor English, scary religion/gender, etc).

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  • [–] 1 point 1 year ago

    ok, so the system must be able to complete payment themselves using well-known "fancy" credit cards, which belong to a white guy working in Big Tech (or an equivalent business credit card, which would be easier) complete with linkedin profile.

    sounds more complicated, but should still be doable. but it's a mind experiment anyways (and probably already in use by secret services to keep a low profile on their agents).

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  • [–] 2 points 1 year ago (1 child)

    You can actually already do this to an extent. Make certain bookings from a different country by VPN and it will affect your price (for the same flight/hotel/etc). I tried this a year ago and it made a difference!

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