Walmart is taking grocery pickup to the next level.
The worlds largest retailer will team with Waymo, a former Google self-driving car project, to launch a new pilot program that will allow customers to pick up their groceries from Walmart using a self-driving car, according to NPR.
Participants will ride in a driverless shuttle car to and from Walmart, where a Walmart employee will bring the customers the groceries they picked out on Walmart.com before they visited the store.
The rides will come at no additional cost.
"Since the pilot is part of our Grocery Pickup program, personal shoppers pick customers' orders and bring them right out to the car ... in this case a Waymo self-driving car," Molly Blakeman, a Walmart spokesperson, told NPR.
The program will be available in Chandler, Arizona, for select customers, according to CNNMoney.
Waymo will use its self-driving Chrysler Pacifica van.
Tom Ward, the vice president of e-commerce operations at Walmart, said in a blog post that the project will help Walmart learn about how to integrate new technology into shopping.
"The purpose of all of this: to learn," Ward said. "While giving customers a unique experience with amazing technology, we're learning how we can make Walmart online grocery pickup even more convenient."
As The Verge reported, Waymo hopes partnerships like this one with Walmart will improve trust from customers about using autonomous vehicles. Right now, Waymo is working with Avis Budget Group to pick up car rentals and take them back home or to the airport once theyve returned their cars.
One there is more trust, Waymo can begin offering more in-car services for customers.
Once Waymo can persuade riders to get in a self-driving car, it can capture their attention during the ride with various in-car entertainment offerings, The Verge reported. By providing shopping discounts, like Waymo has announced it will, the offer could potentially boost ridership, where those billions in entertainment dollars could then be made.
The worlds largest retailer will team with Waymo, a former Google self-driving car project, to launch a new pilot program that will allow customers to pick up their groceries from Walmart using a self-driving car, according to NPR.
Participants will ride in a driverless shuttle car to and from Walmart, where a Walmart employee will bring the customers the groceries they picked out on Walmart.com before they visited the store.
The rides will come at no additional cost.
"Since the pilot is part of our Grocery Pickup program, personal shoppers pick customers' orders and bring them right out to the car ... in this case a Waymo self-driving car," Molly Blakeman, a Walmart spokesperson, told NPR.
The program will be available in Chandler, Arizona, for select customers, according to CNNMoney.
Waymo will use its self-driving Chrysler Pacifica van.
Tom Ward, the vice president of e-commerce operations at Walmart, said in a blog post that the project will help Walmart learn about how to integrate new technology into shopping.
"The purpose of all of this: to learn," Ward said. "While giving customers a unique experience with amazing technology, we're learning how we can make Walmart online grocery pickup even more convenient."
As The Verge reported, Waymo hopes partnerships like this one with Walmart will improve trust from customers about using autonomous vehicles. Right now, Waymo is working with Avis Budget Group to pick up car rentals and take them back home or to the airport once theyve returned their cars.
One there is more trust, Waymo can begin offering more in-car services for customers.
Once Waymo can persuade riders to get in a self-driving car, it can capture their attention during the ride with various in-car entertainment offerings, The Verge reported. By providing shopping discounts, like Waymo has announced it will, the offer could potentially boost ridership, where those billions in entertainment dollars could then be made.
