Walmart, long revered for its prowess in retail supply chain optimization, stands at the precipice of a transformation that promises to upend traditional commerce: preparing its platforms for an era when artificial intelligence agents—not humans—become the primary shoppers. While e-commerce has continually evolved, the new agent-driven paradigm signals a fundamental shift in who—or what—makes purchasing decisions, and retail giants like Walmart are reshaping their technology and advertising strategies accordingly.

Walmart is investing heavily in AI-driven capabilities, both for its own consumer-facing tools and to accommodate third-party AI shopping agents that may soon act on behalf of millions of customers. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, the company is exploring two major approaches: developing proprietary AI agents accessible via Walmart’s website and app, and ensuring its online storefronts are compatible with external AI agents that can browse, compare, and purchase autonomously.

The retail experience, as Walmart U.S. Chief Technology Officer Hari Vasudev notes, will be “different,” and its impact on retail advertising could be profound. Traditional online shopping is anchored in search, comparison, and advertising—a system designed to appeal to human emotion, habit, and impulse. However, AI shopping agents, whether built by Walmart or third parties like OpenAI’s Operator, operate with dispassionate efficiency. They can analyze user preferences, review detailed specifications, consult reviews, and even weigh price per ounce on household goods, all without succumbing to persuasive banners or emotional marketing gambits. These agents can automate tasks from replenishing pantry staples to selecting electronics tailored to the user’s detailed requirements. “Advertising will have to evolve,” Vasudev told the WSJ, as AI agents may bypass traditional ad placements in favor of data-driven, outcomes-based decision-making.

Walmart already offers AI-powered shopping features, such as generating themed party lists or meal plans within its app, but the future points to even greater autonomy. Consumers could soon delegate shopping entirely; their AI assistant of choice could handle everything from weekly groceries to searching the web for the lowest price on a new television. According to PYMNTS, this trend is accelerating as AI-generated summaries in search results change how consumers—and now agents—gather product information.

A key challenge is interoperability: third-party AI agents must be able to interact seamlessly with Walmart’s e-commerce ecosystem. That means providing APIs, structured product feeds, and transparent inventory, pricing, and shipping data. Furthermore, Walmart is already adapting its backend systems and merchandising operations to anticipate these new needs. Internally, Walmart’s “Wally” genAI assistant helps merchants manage and optimize inventory, analyze sales patterns, and automate operational queries, all on Walmart’s proprietary data infrastructure, as detailed by Walmart Global Tech. This internal capability ensures product data is clean, current, and accessible—vital for machine-to-machine commerce.

For brands and advertisers, this new landscape presents both risk and opportunity. The “agent economy” could diminish the influence of traditional display and search ads if AI agents rely more heavily on structured data and less on marketing content. However, as outlined by BGR, advertising could still play a role; if a user’s AI is tasked to find the best deal online, it may encounter ads as it browses, influencing its algorithmic choices in subtle and as-yet-undefined ways.

Retail analysts like Jerry Sheldon of IHL see Walmart’s investment as a bellwether for the industry, confirming that agent-based commerce is not only imminent but inevitable. “This move validates the momentum behind agent-based commerce and sets expectations for the broader industry,” Sheldon told PYMNTS.

For the industry at large, Walmart’s preparations sound a clarion call: the age of AI shopper-agents is coming, and those who fail to adapt risk losing relevance in the emerging marketplace where bots—rather than people—hold the purse strings.