AI assistants pick good products and quote old prices
We asked AI assistants for electronics recommendations, then checked every quoted price against what stores charged the same day.
Updated October 7, 2026
On October 7, 2026 we asked an AI assistant with web search for three common recommendations: noise-cancelling headphones under $350, a robot vacuum under $300 for pet hair, and a 65-inch gaming TV for $1,000. The picks were sensible and well sourced. The prices were another story. The assistant pulled them from deal posts and roundups, and several had already changed.
| Model | What the AI said | Store price that day |
|---|---|---|
| LG 65″ B5 OLED (OLED65B5PUA) | $899.99 at Best Buy | $1,079.99 at Best Buy |
| Hisense 65″ U8QG | $859.99 | $1,199.99 at Best Buy |
| Bose QuietComfort Headphones | about $179 (a June deal) | $169.00 at Best Buy |
| Sony WH-1000XM5 | about $200 to $330 | $198.00 at Best Buy |
Two of the four were wrong by a lot: the Hisense was $340 more than quoted, which pushed it over the $1,000 budget the assistant was shopping for. Two were close or cheaper than quoted. The pattern isn't that AI prices run high or low. It's that they're from a different day.
Why it happens
Assistants don't see a store's live price. They read pages about products: reviews, "best of" lists and deal posts. A deal post that says "$899.99 at Best Buy" stays online long after the sale ends, and the assistant has no way to tell. Most will add a line like "check the current price before buying," which is good advice that leaves the work to you.
What to do
- Use the AI for what it's good at: narrowing down models and explaining trade-offs.
- Treat any price it gives you as a hint, not a quote, especially if it cites a deal or a month.
- Check the exact model at a few major stores before you decide. EveryCart does that in one step.
- For TVs, confirm the screen size on the checkout page. Stores list one series with sizes as options, and a price you see may be for a different size.