Walmart pivots to AI super agents to foster e-commerce growth

Walmart announced a bold new AI strategy on Thursday, unveiling a suite of generative AI-powered "super giants" aimed at transforming how customers shop and how its vast network of employees, suppliers, and developers engage with the company, Reuters reported.

Dubbed "agentic AI", the technology is designed to operate with minimal human oversight and carry out tasks more independently than traditional generative AI. These super agents - targeted at shoppers, store employees, sellers/suppliers, and developers - will consolidate multiple tools into a single interface, becoming the primary way users interact with Walmart's digital systems.

Also Read: Walmart to cut hundreds of store-support roles in major restructuring move

The initiative is a major play in Walmart's race to boost its e-commerce arm, with an ambitious target to make online sales account for 50% of its total revenue within the next five years, the report added. The company generated $648 billion in sales last year.

One such agent, "Sparky," already active in the Walmart app, uses generative AI to help shoppers with tasks like product suggestions, summarizing reviews, or finding the right ink cartridge. In its upgraded super agent form, Sparky will be able to reorder household items, plan themed events, and even suggest recipes by analyzing the contents of a shopper's fridge via computer vision.

For employees, Walmart is developing an "Associate" super agent designed to streamline internal tasks - from applying for parental leave to real-time sales insights - eliminating the need to juggle multiple AI tools.

On the supplier and seller side, "Marty" is being created to ease the onboarding process, automate order management, and assist with campaign creation for advertisers.

Another tool, the "Developer" super agent, will serve as a foundational platform for testing and launching future AI applications.

Also Read: Walmart to create “several hundred” new roles in US and India; laid-off employees eligible to apply

the announcement, made during an event in New York, comes amid a broader industry trend of integrating AI into daily operations, the report added.

According to the report, Walmart has so far avoided linking job reductions directly to AI, though the company has been streamlining its workforce amid automation-led changes in fulfilment centers. When asked whether these new AI tools could replace jobs, Dave Glick, SVP of enterprise business systems, claimed the technology would create new roles, but did not elaborate.

This week, Walmart also hired Daniel Danker, formerly of Instacart, as its new EVP of AI acceleration, product and design. The company has also created a second new leadership role - EVP of AI - that is currently vacant.

Also Read: Walmart layoffs spark backlash, targeting CTO over H-1B workers