Walmart aims for 65% automation by 2026

Massive investment: An employee organises products in a Walmart Supercentre in New Jersey. The world’s largest retailer plans to increase investments in automation technology as part of its US$15bil (RM65.9bil) capital spending budget this year. — AP

NEW YORK: Walmart Inc says it expects about 65% of its stores to be serviced by automation by the end of its financial year 2026, just days after revealing plans to lay off more than 2,000 people at facilities that fulfill online orders.

The announcement at the US retail giant’s annual investor meeting in Tampa, Florida, comes as Walmart increasingly uses its huge stores to handle online-order deliveries and invests heavily in automation to speed up order processing at its eCommerce fulfillment facilities.