Instacart's (CART) AI-powered retail pricing platform is under investigation by the US Federal Trade Commission, Reuters reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.

The regulatory agency has sent the company a demand for information about Instacart's Eversight pricing tool after a recent report by the magazine Consumer Reports and other groups alleged it priced products differently depending on the shopper, the report said.

According to the study, shoppers found prices up to 23% higher for the same items in the same store at the same time, the report said.

In a post on its website, Instacart denied that it was pricing products differently by using AI to determine characteristics of the shopper. "Some of the most misleading stories over the last week have claimed that Instacart uses information about your income, ZIP code, or shopping history to charge you more for items like milk, eggs, and cereal," the company said. "We don't do that. Period."

Instacart and the FTC did not immediately reply to MT Newswires' requests for comment. Reuters cited an FTC spokesperson as saying the agency was aware of the report and "disturbed" by its findings.

Shares of the company were down over 5% in recent premarket activity.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)