Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
instacart on Tuesday announced a series of artificial intelligence tools for grocery stores to provide a more personalized shopping experience and improve retail operations.
CEO Chris Rogers told CNBC that the announcement is a major step forward in the company’s enterprise strategy, which has grown to support hundreds of digital storefronts.
“This takes everything we’ve been building for retailers over the last 10 years and brings it into the AI era,” Rogers said. “It’s important to put enterprise-grade AI technology in the hands of every grocer, whether small, local independent, or national chain.”
The collection of new AI solutions includes an AI shopping assistant that allows grocers to provide shoppers with personalized meal planning, budgeting, and product recommendations.
The agent, called Cart Assistant, can be used across retailers’ websites through Instacart’s Storefront Pro or integrated into the company’s AI-powered shopping carts in-store, according to the release.
Sprouts Farmers Market and kroger The company is rolling out Cart Assistant on its website and app for the first time.
“AI is transforming the way people shop, and today’s customers expect their experiences to be more personal and intuitive,” Sprouts president and chief operating officer Nick Conat said in a release.
The suite also offers Store View, which gives grocers a real-time view of store shelves and uses images and video to identify which products are in short supply or out of stock. Store View already works with McKeever’s and Good Food Holdings.
The lineup also includes AI-powered catalog systems and agent analytics of retail data to provide business insights.
The online distribution company also works with AI companies such as OpenAI. microsoft, google“defining how grocery shopping will work across the next generation of digital agents,” Rogers said.
Instacart’s new products are just the latest example of the growing popularity of generative AI within the retail industry. Amazon Debuts AI agent for third-party sellers in September, walmart launched “super agents” earlier this year to serve shoppers, sellers and suppliers.
Instacart’s stock price took a hit after Amazon launched its same-day delivery service in August, and the company faces competition from brick-and-mortar retail giants such as Walmart and Walmart. targethas its own delivery service.
But Rogers said Instacart is working with other grocers to help them compete with industry giants.
“Our retail partners are already looking to us as a technology partner for the grocery industry, and we want to be part of the AI revolution like the biggest names in the industry,” Rogers said.
