Walmart aims for 65% of stores to be automation serviced by 2026

FILE PHOTO: Shopping trolley is seen in front of Walmart logo in this illustration, July 24, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

(Reuters) -Walmart Inc on Tuesday said it expects about 65% of its stores to be serviced by automation by the end of its fiscal year 2026, just days after revealing plans to lay off more than 2,000 people at facilities that fulfill online orders.

The announcement, amid the U.S. 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 e-commerce fulfillment facilities.