Walmart launches tools for AI agents to shop for customers

Oct 21 — Walmart on Wednesday intrduced new tools that will allow artificial ​intelligence agents to shop and complete transactions for customers, as the retailer seeks to position itself in the growing ‌use of AI-powered assistants in online commerce.

The move underscores Walmart's push into AI-enabled shopping, ⁠and strikes a contrast with ​Amazon, which has sought to ⁠limit third-party AI shopping agents' access to its platform.

Here are the ‌details:

• The retailer ‌said it will roll out "Agent Profiles" next month, enabling shoppers ⁠to authorize individual AI agents, ⁠track their purchases separately and set spending limit or require approval for each transaction

• Walmart said customers would be able to monitor purchases made by AI agents separately from their own orders and revoke agent access at any time

• The tools ‌instilled confidence in the "experimental" shopping process ​of agentic purchases, said Mizuho analyst David Bellinger in a note

• "... the momentum and buy-in from top management teams seems to be making this into a real thing," Bellinger added.

• The company also launched the "Walmart Agent Gateway," a platform that allows AI assistants such as OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google's Gemini and Meta's ​Muse to connect directly with Walmart and Sam's Club systems to search ‌products and complete ‌purchases

• ⁠Walmart said customers would remain in control of purchases, while AI agents would be barred from accessing payment card data and could be blocked for violating company rules

• The company said the tools will ‌be available to all ​Walmart account holders and will not ‌require a Walmart+ membership

(Reporting ⁠by Juveria ​Tabassum in Bengaluru and Nicholas P. Brown in New York; Editing by ​Alistair Bell)

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