Amazon, Google announce tie-up

“We continue to innovate for the future and look to technology,” said Tom Ward, senior vice president of digital operations at Walmart US.

Last week, the two giant companies announced their partnership to innovate what Walmart is already offering in the market, thus, creating Voice Order.

Knowing that voice-assisted shopping does not make up most of the retail spending in the current market environment, Walmart analysts expect the trend to become more popular and marketable in the years to come. And the company does not intend on being left behind.

Accessible in more than one billion devices, Walmart has tapped the giant tech company Google for its “Google assistant” feature Voice Order in making voice shopping possible. With Google Assistant, consumers can order anything at Walmart for pick-up and home deliveries.

In the latter part of the month, voice shopping for pickup will be made available in 2,000 Walmart stores while the online delivery feature in 800 physical stores.

Moreover, a consumer’s purchase history will be linked to Google Assistant to know what they prefer and desire.

“Best of all, customers can be extra confident that we can quickly and accurately identify the items they are asking for with the help of information from their prior purchases with us. The more you use it, the better we’ll get,” added Ward.

With this move, Walmart will be able to heighten up its strength in groceries — their biggest weapon against rival Amazon that already uses Echo and Alexa for its voice-based commerce.

“We know when using voice technology, customers like to add items to their cart one at a time over a few days — not complete their shopping for the week all at once. So, this capability aligns with the way customers shop. We can’t wait to hear what they think about it and how it’s making shopping easier for them,” he explained.

The Voice Order works across various platforms that are powered by Google Assistant which includes Google’s smart speakers and displays, smartphones and more.