Maryland has become the first state in the nation to ban surveillance pricing in grocery stores, according to reporting from The Guardian. The move reflects growing legislative concern over retail pricing practices that use customer data to adjust prices dynamically. Several other states, including Colorado, California, Massachusetts, Illinois, and New Jersey, are currently considering comparable bills.
Surveillance pricing refers to the use of personal information and purchasing behavior to set individualized or localized prices for goods. The practice has drawn scrutiny from consumer advocates and policymakers who argue it can disadvantage lower-income shoppers and lack transparency. Maryland's ban represents the first formal state-level restriction on the technique.
In other technology news, Ask.com, a search engine that emerged during the dot-com era, has ceased operations. The platform, originally launched in 1997 as Ask Jeeves—a year before Google's founding—was owned by IAC, which said it is "continuing to sharpen its focus" as the reason for the shutdown. The closure marks the end of an early internet landmark that predated the modern search engine dominance.
Additionally, a study reported by The Guardian found that OpenAI's o1 model correctly diagnosed 67 percent of emergency room cases using electronic health records and brief notes from nurses, outperforming traditional triage doctors who correctly diagnosed between 50 and 55 percent of cases.
