Two U.S. senators have called on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate Amazon and Walmart, alleging that their AI shopping chatbots may suppress “Made in USA” products and fail to flag fraudulently labeled goods.
Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., and Rick Scott, R-Fla., said Amazon’s Alexa for Shopping and Walmart’s Sparky AI shopping assistants could undermine efforts to promote American manufacturing and mislead consumers.
The senators pointed to a study by a think tank led by former FTC Chair Lina Khan that found the chatbots could suppress information about U.S.-origin products while providing information about products made in other countries, including China.
“When asked why there is no Made in USA filter, Alexa replied that it would ‘redirect significant sales away from their largest seller base,’ referring to overseas manufacturers,” the senators’ letter said, citing the study.
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The study also found that AI shopping assistants can identify potentially false “Made in USA” claims, but that the retailers are not using that capability to crack down on questionable listings.
An Amazon spokesperson said the suggestion that the company intentionally withholds country-of-origin information from customers is “fundamentally wrong,” according to Reuters.
“Alexa for Shopping is a continuously improving service, and to prioritize accuracy, we currently direct customers who ask about country of origin to product detail pages,” the spokesperson added.
The study said that when researchers asked Walmart’s Sparky why it did not flag suspicious “Made in USA” claims, the chatbot cited limited FTC enforcement against retailers, describing it as “a business calculation, not a legal justification.”
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“Following a robust investigation, we strongly encourage the Commission to consider additional enforcement measures to deter such behavior going forward,” the senators wrote in their letter.
The FTC sent warning letters to Amazon and Walmart in July 2025, urging them to address potentially deceptive “Made in USA” claims by third-party sellers on their marketplaces. The FTC said such claims must comply with its Made in USA Labeling Rule and the Federal Trade Commission Act.
Khan sued Amazon while she was at the FTC, accusing the company of maintaining illegal online retail monopolies. The case is ongoing.
Erie Meyer, a senior fellow at the Center for Law and the Economy and a co-author of the study, said the bipartisan support for the senators’ letter was encouraging.
“Seeing Sen. Baldwin and Sen. Scott sign the same letter gives me hope that supporting American businesses is still a bipartisan issue,” Meyer said.