The fast-food giant is being sued in a Chicago federal court after prosecutors allege that an artificial-intelligence system it provides to independent operators is being used to coordinate menu prices. The complaint, filed on 2 October, claims the tool causes franchises to share confidential pricing and sales information, a practice that violates U.S. antitrust rules designed to keep competitors setting prices independently.
Most McDonald’s locations in the United States are owned by franchisees who, under corporate policy, are supposed to set their own prices. Antitrust statutes require each outlet to determine rates without colluding with rivals, because coordinated pricing can suppress competition and raise costs for shoppers. The suit argues the AI platform effectively bypasses that independence.
McDonald’s corporate spokesperson described the filing as riddled with errors and pledged a vigorous defense. A Reuters report earlier this year said some franchise owners felt pressure to adopt the pricing algorithm and to log any departures from its suggestions. The company rejected that portrayal, labeling the reporting speculative and uninformed, and reiterated that it does not employ dynamic pricing but merely offers informational guidance.
The action was initiated by Michael Thomas, an Illinois resident who tracks his meals closely. He reported that a standard Quarter Pounder with cheese, fries and a soda cost different amounts within his own DeKalb neighborhood. Thomas’s attorney did not respond to a request for comment, and the case is being positioned as a nationwide class action.
Other customers have described similar disparities. In Manhattan’s financial district, a 43-year-old patron paid roughly $15 for a mango-pineapple smoothie included in a value meal, a price he encounters only about once a month. The same order in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights neighborhood was billed at about $9. A 27-year-old shopper noted her snack combo cost $11.51 and observed a gradual rise in overall prices.
Analysts warn that algorithmic pricing could worsen the nation’s affordability challenges, making everyday expenses harder to bear. According to Lindsay Owens of the Groundwork Collaborative, more than 90 bills have been introduced this year aiming to curb algorithmic price-fixing. McDonald’s bought the AI firm Dynamic Yield in 2019, but maintains the tool merely supplies data that franchises may choose to follow. A 2024 fact sheet showed an average menu item price rose about 40 percent from 2019 to 2024.