Walmart Inc. announced it has teamed up with Google to transform its retail landscape and make shopping easier for customers. The retail giant revealed its new partnership is bringing Google's Gemini AI into its stores and website to offer a better shopping experience and make it more personal for every customer.
On Sunday, 11 January 2026, Walmart and Google confirmed that shoppers will soon be able to use the Gemini AI assistant to find and buy items from Walmart and Sam's Club more easily. Through this collaboration, artificial intelligence will act as a sophisticated personal shopper, capable of quickly locating any product a customer needs and handling the checkout process the moment they are done shopping.
A New Era of Conversational Shopping
The integration of Google's Gemini AI into Walmart's ecosystem means moving beyond the traditional search bars and scrolling of product listings. The AI will search for the items and process everything for immediate checkout.
The new shopping experience developed by Walmart is accessible through Gemini via the Universal Commerce Protocol. This is designed to solve several major customer needs:
- Great products at low prices: When a customer asks Gemini for advice - like what gear is needed for a spring camping trip - it will automatically suggest relevant items from Walmart and Sam's Club. And because customers can chat with the AI, it can find even more specific products as the conversation continues.
- Personalisation and familiarity: When customers link their Walmart accounts to Gemini AI, it can suggest items based on what shoppers usually buy. It can combine new picks with previously bought items and apply all Walmart+ or Sam's Club membership perks to the purchase.
- Super-fast delivery: Shoppers can have their items delivered from the local store or club to anywhere. With hundreds of thousands of products available at Walmart and Sam's Club, all of them could be delivered in less than three hours and even as fast as 30 minutes.
Walmart is aiming to reinvent the online shopping experience by upgrading its systems through a major partnership with Google's Gemini AI. For a long time, e-commerce used the 'search and click' where keywords are typed into the search bar and scroll through endless pages of results. Now, the new tool replaces this old method with just a simple 'conversation' with an AI.
A Strategic Move Amid the Fierce AI Competition
The timing of the collaboration is no coincidence, as tech giants including Google, Amazon, and OpenAI compete to lead the AI race. By placing its products across multiple AI assistants, including a similar deal with OpenAI last year, Walmart is ensuring it remains a top choice for shoppers, no matter which platform they prefer.
'The transition from traditional web or app search to agent-led commerce represents the next great evolution in retail. We aren't just watching the shift, we are driving it,' John Furner, President and CEO of Walmart US and incoming President and CEO of Walmart Inc. said in a press release.
The CEO added, 'We want to help customers get what they need and want, when and where they want it. Partnering with Google to bring the Walmart experience directly into Gemini is another step toward creating seamless shopping experiences for customers and members that are more intuitive and personal than ever before.'
Sundar Pichai, Google and Alphabet's CEO, also stated that artificial intelligence has the power to improve every phase of the shopping process - from the moment of discovery to the delivery to shoppers' doorsteps. 'Walmart is an innovator in retail and we are excited to partner with them on a new open standard to make agentic commerce a reality.' Pinchai said.
Originally published on IBTimes UK
