Walmart is using an AI-powered chatbot to negotiate with some of its vendors.
The announcement marks a new frontier for digital automation, which Goldman Sachs predicts will affect two-thirds of jobs in the U.S. and Europe.
Walmart's negotiating chatbot was developed by Pactum AI Inc, a software firm based in Mountain View, California.
- The company specializes in helping large vendors automate the process of negotiating with suppliers.
- Walmart piloted the software in Canada before rolling it out in Chile, South Africa, and the U.S.
- Pactum said in January that its AI-powered software allows Walmart to negotiate with 2,000 suppliers simultaneously.
- Walmart said the system struck deals with about 68% of the suppliers with whom it has negotiated since it was rolled out in early 2021.
- The retail giant currently uses the chatbot to negotiate equipment purchases, rather than for the products that it sells to consumers.
- The software is deployed to handle smaller contracts, allowing procurement managers to focus on larger negotiations, Bloomberg reports.
