BENTONVILLE, AR - Technology continues to advance and develop, and Walmart, a driving force in the retail sector, has never shied away from innovation. The retailer entered an innovative partnership with Bossa Nova Robotics to integrate roving robots into Walmart’s store aisles to keep track of its inventory. Now, after expanding the pilot to 650 of its U.S. stores, Walmart is ending the five-year partnership.

According to The Wall Street Journal, the retail giant has ended its contract with Bossa Nova because the retailer found different, sometimes simpler solutions that proved just as useful, stated people familiar with the situation. As more shoppers continue to use online delivery and pickup because of COVID-19 concerns, Walmart’s workers were the ones to roam aisles collecting online orders and noticing inventory problems.

This isn’t the end for Walmart’s dabble in technology, though. The source continued to note Walmart is still testing out new technology to advance its operations. Also, the retailer is pursuing ways to use workers to monitor product amounts and locations in addition to other automation technology, according to the people familiar with the situation.

“We learned a lot about how technology can assist associates, make jobs easier, and provide a better customer experience,” said a Walmart spokeswoman in a statement obtained by WSJ. “We will continue testing new technologies and investing in our own processes and apps to best understand and track our inventory and help move products to our shelves as quickly as we can.”

What will we see Walmart release next? Especially as the retail sector as well as the rest of the industry continue to adapt to this dynamic challenge? ANUK will continue to keep a finger on the newswire.

Walmart