this week, Amazon E-commerce giant and rival ramps up investment in artificial intelligence walmart Adopt new technology to stay competitive.
Amazon’s $1 billion industrial innovation fund Increased has investment Companies combining AI and robotics to increase efficiency across logistics networks this year Franziska Bossertsaid the head of corporate venture capital.
Of the 12 investments the company has already made, one mantis robotics, a company that develops robotic arms that work together with humans.Amazon also pledges up to $4 billion in generative AI startups human.
Additionally, the company is leveraging new AI capabilities to drive revenue through B2B services. Amazon bedrockan e-commerce company’s service that allows companies to use foundational models from both their own teams and external AI startups; announced Add Friday (February 23rd) model from Mistral AI to that product. The AI startup offers generative AI designed to excel at tasks such as text summarization, structuring, question answering, and code completion.
Meanwhile, Walmart is leveraging AI to increase store efficiency and reduce store labor costs. Sam’s Club As president and CEO of Sam’s Club, a subsidiary chris nicholas told retail analysts. income I called last week. A chain of warehouse clubs uses computer vision to eliminate a step that requires employees to check self-service customer receipts at the door.
As a whole, Walmart is leveraging AI across its business.
“We are very excited about generative AI,” says Walmart CEO Doug McMillon He told analysts on a conference call. “We have a tremendous opportunity to help improve the customer member experience, improve the employee experience and productivity, and take costs out of the business.”
He said the company is already using the technology to improve its search capabilities and enable smart recommendations when consumers type in phrases like “Help me buy a Valentine’s Day gift.” He said there was.
Consumers are leveraging these types of AI tools. The November PYMNTS Intelligence report “AI-enabled payments expand customer choice” revealed that most consumers participate in AI-related activities on a weekly basis. 84% search online, 52% use a navigation app or device, and 52% receive product recommendations online. Additionally, one in three consumers say AI technology is very or very noticeable in their daily personal activities.
These AI upgrades come as Amazon and Walmart race to outpace their competitors to capture U.S. consumers’ retail spending. In the November issue of PYMNTS’ “Whole Payroll Report” series, “Amazon widens lead over Walmart in retail spending” used earnings reports and data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis to estimate the market share of each retail giant, and found that Amazon will account for 8.2% of U.S. consumer retail spending in the third quarter of 2023. It turned out that Walmart took 7.2%.
Amazon and Walmart’s continued investments in AI demonstrate not only a commitment to staying competitive, but also an understanding of the role technology will play in shaping the future of commerce.
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