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Phia, the shopping startup co-founded by Bill Gates’ daughter, Phoebe Gates, and Sofia Kiani, has been accused of a practice known as “cookie stuffing,” which may have helped the product get commissions and credit for sales it didn’t actually make. According to a Bloomberg investigation.
The report sparked controversy and led to the suspension of FIA impact.coma leading affiliate and influencer platform. Other startups have been sued for “cookie stuffing,” notably Honey, which is owned by PayPal and remains the subject of an ongoing class action lawsuit.
Founded in 2025, Via It raised more than $40 millionn in finance and has a star-studded list of investors, including Kim Kardashian and Hailey Bieber. The startup has developed an app as a browser extension that works somewhat like Google Flights, but specifically for shopping. Phia helps customers find the lowest priced items across many retailers as well as discount codes to use when shopping. The company earns a commission on purchases made through the platform through an industry practice known as affiliate marketing.
The Bloomberg investigation, as well as the findings of an independent and competing consultant, found that if a user shopped at an online retailer — even if they arrived at the site on their own or through another affiliate program like Wirecutter — Phia would open a new tab in the background. During the checkout process, Phia will bypass referral codes from other affiliates and instead enter their own, allowing them to receive credit and potentially earn a commission on a purchase you did not earn.
Once the issue was reported to Phia, a spokesperson told Bloomberg that all necessary changes had been made to fix the issue. A check by Bloomberg found that the problem had been resolved. It’s not clear whether the fix will be enough to satisfy retailers and affiliate partners who work with Phia.
TechCrunch reached out to Phia for comment and has not received a response.
