Skip to Content
Artificial intelligence

Walmart’s Robotic Shopping Carts Are the Latest Sign That Automation Is Eating Commerce

Automated shopping carts may be a gimmick, but stores and warehouses are rapidly being transformed by automation.
June 15, 2016

The biggest retailer in the U.S., Walmart, is experimenting with robot shopping carts.

​The company has yet to release any details of how the robo-carts work. But the news highlights how rapidly automation is moving into shopping and warehouse fulfillment. It also shows how keen Walmart is to embrace any technology that might help it counter the shift toward online shopping and faster product delivery. Just a few weeks ago, Walmart also said it was testing whether drones could help check the inventory in its stores.

Robots have popped up in a few stores, mostly serving as experimental automated helpers. Behind the scenes, however, automation is rapidly taking hold at large retailers. Walmart’s archenemy, Amazon, has led the way by introducing automation to its fulfillment centers, using robots that ferry shelves stocked with products between stackers and pickers.

The space is becoming more crowded by the day. Other companies are developing robots capable of assisting with warehouse work in more sophisticated ways. In fact, last week I attended an event at which several other companies demonstrated other robotic warehouse helpers. NextShift Robotics, for example, showed a new system that can retrieve bins from shelves after workers have filled them with items. Another company, Locus Robotics, offers robots that can quickly be trained to move goods around a warehouse or factory.

All of which is to say that, while robot shopping carts might be a little unnecessary, it makes a lot of sense for Walmart to try to understand how automation may disrupt its business just as much as e-commerce already has.

(Read more: Bloomberg, New York Times, “Inside Amazon,” “Robots Are Invading Malls and Sidewalks Near You,” “A Dexterous Warehouse Robot Does Things Amazon’s Automated Helpers Can’t”)

Deep Dive

Artificial intelligence

Large language models can do jaw-dropping things. But nobody knows exactly why.

And that's a problem. Figuring it out is one of the biggest scientific puzzles of our time and a crucial step towards controlling more powerful future models.

OpenAI teases an amazing new generative video model called Sora

The firm is sharing Sora with a small group of safety testers but the rest of us will have to wait to learn more.

Google’s Gemini is now in everything. Here’s how you can try it out.

Gmail, Docs, and more will now come with Gemini baked in. But Europeans will have to wait before they can download the app.

Google DeepMind’s new generative model makes Super Mario–like games from scratch

Genie learns how to control games by watching hours and hours of video. It could help train next-gen robots too.

Stay connected

Illustration by Rose Wong

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review

Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.

Thank you for submitting your email!

Explore more newsletters

It looks like something went wrong.

We’re having trouble saving your preferences. Try refreshing this page and updating them one more time. If you continue to get this message, reach out to us at customer-service@technologyreview.com with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive.