Skip to main content

Walmart reportedly explores cashier-free stores to keep pace with Amazon

How do you like the idea of waltzing into a store, taking what you need, and then getting the hell out? No checkouts, no lines, no waiting.

Walmart is exploring the idea of stores without staff where you can simply “grab and go,” with computer vision technology monitoring what you place in your bag so it can automatically tot up the amount and take it from your bank account, sources claiming to have knowledge of the matter told Recode this week.

Recommended Videos

Yes, it does sound very similar to Amazon’s Go store, a concept unveiled about a year ago but which has yet to launch for the public. The last we heard, Amazon was having some difficulties at its test store in Seattle regarding the all-important payment system, with the technology unable to track more than 20 customers at a time.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

It’s not clear how similar Walmart’s technology is to Amazon’s, but it nevertheless appears to be creating something along the same lines to offer a speedier and more convenient shopping experience that really doesn’t feel like shopping at all.

Walmart’s effort, codenamed Project Kepler, is part of the company’s Store No. 8 startup incubator, and is reportedly headed up by Mike Hanrahan, the co-founder and former chief technology officer of online shopping service Jet.com. Walmart acquired Jet.com for around $3 billion in 2016 and took on Hanrahan and Marc Lore, Jet.com’s other co-founder. Lore now leads Walmart’s ecommerce efforts and the pair are using their experience to battle the likes of Amazon while attempting to broaden the customer base of the big-box retailer.

Another initiative reportedly underway is a personal shopping service targeting “busy NYC moms,” according to Recode’s sources. Managed by Rent the Runway co-founder Jennifer Fleiss, the service would use text messages to send product recommendations to shoppers, which they can then quickly purchase simply by replying. Once again with Amazon in its sights, many of the offered products would be delivered to customers within 24 hours, or within two business days at the most, while returns would be collected by the company at no extra charge.

Walmart’s reported projects indicate the company’s determination to use technology to bolster its business and expand its customer base to keep pace with the likes of Amazon. However, we’ll have to wait and see whether the cashier-free store and messaging-based shopping service develop into a real offering, as it’s still early days for both initiatives.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Walmart will no longer accept in-store pre-orders for PlayStation 5
A PlayStation 5 DualSense controller.

Walmart is reversing its decision to offer in-store pre-orders for the PlayStation 5, which was supposed to kick off on September 22.

Walmart previously confirmed that it would be re-opening pre-orders for the PlayStation 5 on September 22 after the pre-order debacle that caused many players to miss out on securing a console. The process will not be online though, so customers will have to go to one of Walmart's physical stores.

Read more
Walmart will have in-store pre-orders for PlayStation 5 on September 22
Walmart Grocery Pickup

The PlayStation 5 pre-order debacle has been nothing short of terrible for most people, with retailers sporadically making inventory available at random times, with only eagle-eyed gamers refreshing store pages able to nab one against bots that automatically snatch up a console.

Digital Trends reached out to several retailers to try and get some clarity regarding availability, and Walmart replied with some actionable info. They will be reopening pre-orders for the PS5 on Tuesday, September 22, but you will have to do so in an actual store.

Read more
Walmart takes on Amazon Prime with new subscription service
A Walmart sign on the outside of a store.

Walmart is launching an online membership service featuring free shipping from stores, a direct shot at Amazon's lucrative Prime service.

Walmart's new service, called Walmart+, will cost $98 per year or $13 per month, the company announced on Tuesday.

Read more