Artificial intelligence could eventually help consumers cut everyday costs by automatically comparing prices, negotiating contracts and moving their money to better deals, according to Wharton finance professor emeritus Jeremy Siegel.
The argument adds another dimension to the debate over AI agents and inflation. While the infrastructure boom behind AI is creating near-term demand for energy, computing capacity and specialist workers, Siegel believes autonomous agents could eventually increase competition in consumer markets by removing much of the effort involved in finding and switching to cheaper alternatives.
Siegel Sees AI Agents Challenging Consumer Inertia
Siegel’s argument focuses on industries where companies can benefit when customers remain on existing contracts even when cheaper or better alternatives are available.
Writing for WisdomTree, he pointed to banking, telecommunications and insurance as examples of sectors where consumers frequently remain with existing providers because researching alternatives and completing a switch requires time and effort.
AI agents could change that behaviour. Instead of simply identifying another provider, increasingly capable systems may be able to compare offers, negotiate terms and complete transactions on a user’s behalf.
Meta’s recently announced personal AI agent Muse illustrates the direction in which the technology is moving. According to Meta, the system has payment capabilities and can carry out tasks including purchasing groceries connected to a recipe or completing the sale of a vehicle after an acceptable price has been established.
The economic significance would come from scale. If millions of consumers routinely used software to search for higher deposit rates, cheaper phone contracts, lower insurance premiums or less expensive products, businesses could face greater pressure to keep prices competitive.
Siegel compared the possibility with expectations surrounding the early internet. Online comparison made pricing more transparent, but consumers still had to complete the transaction themselves. Autonomous agents could remove part of that remaining friction.
There are already signs that consumers are turning to AI for financial assistance. An OECD paper published in July said about one-third of individuals across member countries used AI, with financial applications including budgeting, investing, credit management and understanding financial products.
Lower Search Costs Could Strengthen Price Competition
The broader economic case extends beyond individual household savings. When customers can switch suppliers more easily, companies that depend on consumer inertia may have less room to maintain unattractive pricing.
Recent OECD research provides useful context. In a 2026 report on digital markets, the organisation said agentic AI could lower the costs associated with searching, comparing and shopping, although it also warned that greater delegation could create new risks if AI systems become powerful intermediaries between consumers and businesses.
There is also evidence that the underlying technology is becoming cheaper. The OECD reported that its quality-adjusted price index for text-based AI models fell by nearly 80% between January 2024 and April 2026. However, it cautioned that autonomous agents can consume substantially more computing resources per task, meaning falling model prices do not automatically translate into lower total operating costs.
The macroeconomic picture is similarly mixed. International Monetary Fund research published in September found that AI innovation could raise aggregate labour productivity by as much as 3.8% over the long term, although those gains may take time to spread across the economy.
That distinction matters for inflation. Higher productivity can reduce the cost of producing goods and services, but the investment required to build AI infrastructure can push demand and prices higher before those efficiency gains arrive. The IMF said in September that the AI investment boom represents a near-term demand shock, while longer-term productivity improvements could expand supply.
Trust Will Determine Whether Automated Bargaining Takes Off
The potential for AI agents to intensify competition depends on consumers being willing to give software authority over sensitive financial and purchasing decisions.
That remains a significant hurdle. The OECD has warned that consumers need sufficient financial, digital and AI literacy to evaluate what information an agent requests and assess the recommendations it produces.
Early autonomous systems have also demonstrated the risks. The Guardian reported that a Muse agent involved in a Facebook Marketplace transaction in Toronto arranged a collection and disclosed the seller’s home address without permission.
For businesses, the development creates a different question. If automated agents become common buyers and negotiators, pricing strategies designed around customer inertia could become less effective.
The disinflationary case therefore depends on more than AI becoming smarter. Agents must become reliable enough to earn consumer trust, capable enough to complete transactions safely and widespread enough to influence how companies compete. If those conditions emerge, automated negotiation could turn AI from a productivity tool into a new source of pressure on consumer prices.
