Walmart, OpenAI Partnership Turns ChatGPT Into Checkout Counter

The world’s largest retailer is betting big on generative AI, joining forces with OpenAI to turn everyday shopping into a chat-based experience.

Walmart is deepening its commitment to AI through a new partnership with OpenAI that will allow its customers to browse, chat, and buy their groceries through ChatGPT. It marks a significant step in Walmart’s broader AI roadmap and could boost OpenAI’s revenue as the company seeks to gain a foothold in the digital shopping space.

How the partnership aims to enhance the shopping experience

Designed to streamline shopping, the system enables Walmart and Sam’s Club customers to use text or voice to describe their needs, eliminating the need for manual item searches. Transactions are finalized through OpenAI’s Instant Checkout feature. 

For example, a shopper planning a Taco Tuesday family dinner can ask ChatGPT to find all the ingredients — everything from ground beef to tortillas — with the chatbot curating a full grocery list and facilitating checkout. Walmart says this approach moves shopping from a task-driven activity to an interactive experience that anticipates customers’ needs. 

“For many years now, eCommerce shopping experiences have consisted of a search bar and a long list of item responses. That is about to change,” said Doug McMillon, Walmart’s president and CEO, in announcing the collaboration. 

He added: “There is a native AI experience coming that is multi-media, personalized, and contextual. We are running towards that more enjoyable and convenient future with Sparky and through partnerships, including this important step with OpenAI.”

Walmart’s “AI-first” approach to shopping

Over the past two years, Walmart has been making a concerted effort to implement AI initiatives that revolutionize its operations and customer engagement, adopting what it calls an “AI-first” strategy. Recently, the retail giant has employed machine learning to optimize supply chains, deployed AI-powered assistants for store associates, and integrated predictive analytics to improve inventory management.

In announcing the OpenAI deal, Walmart highlighted its goal of creating “AI-first shopping experiences” that marry convenience to personalization. The company also acknowledged the importance of transparency and user control, noting that generative AI models can produce imperfect results, and stated that it will rely on customer feedback and clear disclosure mechanisms to ensure the system continually improves. 

Beyond conversational interactions, the partnership provides Walmart with access to OpenAI’s enterprise-grade tools, paving the way for greater experimentation with personalized product recommendations, refining search relevance, and enhancing customer communication.

However, perhaps most beneficial of all, it could accelerate Walmart’s internal AI adoption, which allows the retailer to train more employees on AI-driven tools and workflows. 

OpenAI seizes more chatbot shopping territory

For OpenAI, the Walmart deal further cements ChatGPT’s shift from a conversational assistant to a fully transactional platform. Just last month, the company launched Instant Checkout, its in-chat purchasing system built on the Agentic Commerce Protocol it co-developed with Stripe. 

The system already supports Etsy sellers and will soon expand to over a million Shopify merchants. With the addition of Walmart, OpenAI has expanded its commerce network into mainstream retail, enabling ChatGPT users to complete purchases directly within the app. This move allows OpenAI to establish a foothold in the growing AI-driven shopping ecosystem. 

Rollout timeline and expansion

Walmart’s ChatGPT shopping integration is set to launch “soon,” according to the company’s press release, but no specific date has been revealed. It will initially roll out to Walmart and Sam’s Club customers in the US. 

OpenAI’s Instant Checkout is already live for US Etsy sellers and will expand to more than a million Shopify merchants, with additional retail integrations expected in the coming months.

OpenAI has been striking deals lately. In addition to this Walmart collaboration, the tech giant has also partnered with Broadcom to build its own AI chip.