Walmart reveals plan to re-design the shopping experience using artificial intelligence

BENTONVILLE, ARKANSAS — Walmart unveiled its strategy to accelerate adaptive retail, the new era of retail defined by profoundly personal experiences, ushered in by the fast-advancing world of artificial intelligence.

Walmart recently revealed proprietary artificial intelligence (AI), Generative AI (GenAI), Augmented Reality (AR) and Immersive Commerce platforms it is leveraging to create hyper-personalized, convenient and engaging shopping experiences across Walmart stores, Sam’s Clubs, apps and other virtual environments.

“A standard search bar is no longer the fastest path to purchase, rather we must use technology to adapt to customers’ individual preferences and needs,” said Suresh Kumar, global chief technology officer and chief development officer, Walmart Inc. “At the heart of our platform strategy is developing common global core capabilities that are built once and deployed across Walmart U.S., Sam’s Club and Walmart International. As a global company with multiple business segments, this enables us to move with speed as we bring consistent experiences to all our customers and members.”

Walmart is tntroducing retail-specific Large Language Models (LLMs) and a new Customer Care Chatbot. It has developed a system of proprietary GenAI platforms to power GenAI technology, with the latest being Wallaby – a series of retail-specific LLMs that will primarily be used to create customer-facing experiences. Wallaby is trained with decades of Walmart data, enabling Walmart to combine it with other LLMs to create responses that are highly contextual and tailored to the Walmart environment. It is also trained to respond in a natural tone that aligns with Walmart’s core values.

Leveraging a combination of GenAI platforms, Walmart also has created a more personalized version of its AI-powered Customer Support Assistant. Now, the Customer Support Assistant recognizes who the customer is right from the start and goes beyond just understanding the customer’s intent to taking actions, like finding orders and managing returns. In testing, customers reported an overall smoother experience that helped them handle their issues quickly and on their own. The company is actively building dozens of additional GenAI tools for customers, members, associates and partners that leverage its GenAI platforms, including enhanced care assistants for Sam’s Club and Walmart International.

Customers crave personalized shopping experiences, with personalization as a key enabler. Walmart has developed a Content Decision Platform, aligned with its Digital Trust Commitments and Responsible AI Pledge, that serves as a foundational tool to create shopping experiences tailored to the individual customer. The platform leverages AI-based technology to understand the customer and a GenAI-powered tool that can predict the type of content they’d like to see on the site. It’s already being used within select areas of Walmart.com.

With this technology, Walmart will create a unique homepage for each shopper making the online shopping experience as personalized as stepping into a store designed exclusively for each customer. The U.S. experience is expected to launch by the end of next year, and the company plans to also use the platform’s underlying technology in Walmart International’s Canada and Mexico markets for personalized item recommendations, setting a new standard in global retail.

Retail today goes beyond just online and in-store shopping, or even a combination of both. It’s about meeting customers in new places, particularly younger generations for whom shopping is often a byproduct of other activities, like gaming. To do this, Walmart has developed an AR platform called Retina, which leverages AI, GenAI and automation to create tens of thousands of 3D assets, along with Immersive Commerce APIs. These technologies enable the company to bring the Walmart shopping experience into new virtual social environments, unlock new revenue streams and be at the forefront of Adaptive Retail.

This month, Walmart reported $169.59 billion in revenue this past quarter, beating analysts expectations. Walmart’s net income came in at $4.58 billion. Walmart’s e-commerce and advertising operations saw revenue rise by 27% and 28%.