Walmart: The Future of Shopping Is Agentic. Meet Sparky.

• Walmart is transforming shopping with Sparky, a GenAI assistant that synthesizes reviews, offers occasion-based recommendations, and helps customers plan, compare and purchase with confidence.
• With capabilities soon expanding to include reordering, service booking and understanding text, image, audio and video inputs, Sparky is being built as a true AI-powered retail companion — designed to simplify life and embed seamlessly into how customers shop and live.

At Walmart, the customer is #1 — always. A decades-long legacy of using technology to help people save money and live better continues as Walmart ignites the next evolution of retail with its GenAI-powered shopping assistant, Sparky. 

Starting this week, customers can experience Sparky across all categories via the smiling “Ask Sparky” button in the Walmart app. Sparky helps customers search to find items, synthesize reviews, and offers insights to prepare for any occasion — from looking up current sporting events and finding the right jersey to planning celebrations and picking out the perfect toy. For example, all within the Sparky platform, a customer can ask what sports teams are playing that night or check the weather at the beach they’re heading to — and get the perfect outfit recommended.  

From answering product questions to comparing options, Sparky takes the guesswork out of shopping, making recommendations so customers can add to cart with confidence. Sparky provides instant and comprehensive answers to product-related questions, helping customers quickly understand specific features, compare items and make informed choices.

In today’s always-connected world, Sparky is here to do more than just answer questions, it is designed to be a trusted partner. Soon, Sparky will do even more — giving customers the power to customize their experience, from automatically reordering household essentials to booking services that simplify even the most complex shopping tasks. It will be multi-modal — able to understand text, images, audio and video — seamlessly weaving into customers’ lives to unlock instant access to the products and services they need, whenever and however they shop.

Ultimately, Sparky will solve everyday problems, freeing up time for what matters most. “What's for dinner?” becomes a week of family-approved meal plans with ingredients automatically added to cart. “How do I fix this leaky faucet?” turns into step-by-step guidance with the right tools ordered for same-day delivery. “I need party ideas!” sparks a complete event planning session — theme, decorations, food and gifts — all highly personalized and coordinated within budget. 

Sparky joins Walmart’s growing suite of AI-powered shopping capabilities, which currently includes search within the navigation bar, summaries of product reviews, product descriptions and product comparisons.

Sparky is more than a feature — it’s a foundation for what’s next. Fueling Walmart's trajectory into the future of shopping, Sparky isn’t just revolutionizing retail; it's paving the way for a new and improved customer experience. And this is just the beginning.

Source : Desiree Gosby, Senior Vice President, Tech Strategy and Emerging Tech, Walmart

Image : Walmart

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