NEW YORK (AP) – Walmart is enlisting the help of robots to keep up with the increase in online orders.
The company said Wednesday it plans to build warehouses in its stores where self-driving robots will pick up groceries and have them ready for shoppers in an hour or less.
Walmart declined to say how many of the warehouses it would build, but construction has begun at stores in Lewisville, Texas; Plano, Texas; American Fork, Utah; and Bentonville, Arkansas, where Walmart’s corporate headquarters are located. A test site opened in a Salem, New Hampshire store over a year ago.
Walmart hopes the warehouses will speed up curbside pickups, where orders are delivered to shoppers’ cars. The option, along with deliveries, became increasingly popular as virus-weary shoppers don’t go to the store. At the start of the pandemic last year, Walmart said delivery and pick-up sales are up 300%.
The company said the robots will not roam shop aisles. Instead, they stay in warehouses built in separate areas, either in a store or next to it. Windows are installed in some locations so that shoppers can see the robots at work.
The wheeled robots transport crates of apple juice, cereal, and other small goods to Walmart workers, who then pack them for shoppers. Rival Amazon uses similar technology in its warehouses, with robots bringing books, vitamins, and other small items to workers to pack and ship.
Walmart said the robots save time because employees don’t have to walk through store aisles to find items. However, employees will have to go into the store to get fresh groceries, such as meat, fish and vegetables. They will also have to grab TVs, vacuum cleaners and other large items that are too big for the robots to carry.
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