One super agent is the consumer-facing shopping assistant Sparky that helps shoppers find things within Walmart’s mobile app. Walmart is also testing ads within Sparky that direct to suppliers’ products sold on Walmart.
There is also a super agent called Marty that helps suppliers manage retail operations as well as advertising campaigns. Another super agent helps store associates track schedules and store data. And the final super agent is designed for developers to test and roll out technology.
Walmart CEO John Furner explained the internal AI push as a way to simplify Walmart’s operations and help shoppers during Walmart’s recent fourth-quarter earnings.
“The way we are using technology and AI is helping us create great customer solutions, reduce friction, simplify decision-making, and pinpoint where our inventory is—all while maintaining the trust we’ve earned from our customers and members,” Furner told investors. “And we aren’t just embracing the tools that are changing the way people shop—we are creating them.”
Walmart also has partnerships with Google and OpenAI that enable consumers to purchase Walmart products from AI responses.
Ecommerce analyst Juozas Kaziukėnas described Walmart’s AI investments as part of the retailer’s bigger race to catch up to Amazon in ecommerce.
“Given Walmart’s history of lagging in ecommerce for years to only eventually wake up to try to catch up in a market lost to Amazon, they are approaching AI differently,” he said. “As someone who is paying a lot of attention to the AI and commerce overlap, I’m only paying attention to Walmart—I don’t think other established retailers or even modern retailers like Instacart or DoorDash have made much progress.”
