Walmart Unveils Drone Expansion, Generative AI-Powered Search Tool
Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said in a keynote speech at CES earlier this week that the retail giant would expand its drone delivery footprint and launch an artificial intelligence-powered search tool for iOS users. McMillon said the drone delivery would be expanded to 1.8 million additional households in the Dallas-Fort Worth area later this year.
“This expansion will bring the ultimate convenience of drone delivery to communities across the DFW area," said Prathibha Rajashekhar, Walmart's senior vice president of innovation and automation in the U.S., in a press release. "Customers will have access to a broad assortment of items from Walmart available for delivery to their home in just minutes. Drone delivery is not just a concept of the future; it’s happening now and will soon be a reality for millions of additional Texans.”
Walmart will be working with drone delivery providers Wing and Zipline. Walmart said deliveries could happen in as little as 10 minutes to 30 minutes.
Total Retail's Take: Walmart launched its drone delivery service in 2021, partnering with Zipline and Droneup to offer the service in Arkansas, according to The Verge. It later expanded into five other states: Arizona, Florida, Texas, Utah and Virginia. Walmart said it has already completed more than 20,000 safe deliveries since the service's launch, and that the expansion would cover 75 percent of the DFW area by the end of 2024.
The race to dominate drone deliveries is well underway, with Amazon.com beginning drone deliveries in 2022. It's only a matter of time before other retailers join the competition to have drones in the air and get their products into customers' hands more quickly.
