pymnts Profile:
Walmart (NYSE: WMT)
Walmart Inc. is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores, and grocery stores. Headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, the company was founded by Sam Walton in 1962 and incorporated on October 31, 1969.
FTC Urged to Enforce Rarely Used Antitrust Law Against Retail Giants
March 28, 2024A group of lawmakers is calling on the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to wield a seldom-used antitrust law against retail behemoths like Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc., citing profit ...Read moreDenver Court Sets August Date for Kroger-Albertsons Merger Showdown
March 28, 2024In a legal showdown set to commence on August 12, The Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos. brace for a pivotal hearing as Colorado’s Attorney General, Phil Weiser, fervently pushes to ...Read moreWalmart Withdraws and Refiles Antitrust Review Application for Vizio Acquisition
March 28, 2024Retail giant Walmart has notified two key U.S. antitrust agencies of its decision to withdraw and subsequently refile a review application pertaining to its planned acquisition of Vizio. According to reports ...Read moreClinique Becomes First Estée Lauder Brand on Amazon Premium Beauty
March 27, 2024Some Estée Lauder Companies brands will open dedicated storefronts in the U.S. on Amazon’s Premium Beauty destination over the coming months. This rollout will start with Clinique, which announced its debut on the store ...Read moreBank of America Launches Platform for Small Businesses and CDFIs
March 27, 2024Bank of America launched an online platform that connects small business owners with community development financial institutions (CDFIs). The new Access to Capital Connector enables small business applicants to answer questions to become pre-qualified ...Read moreRetailers Set Sights on High-Income Shoppers’ Generous Fashion Budgets
March 27, 2024As retailers look to drive loyalty with high-income consumers, apparel and accessories emerge as a key point of entry for winning the biggest earners. The February/March installment of the PYMNTS Intelligence ...Read moreWalmart.com Adds Homeowner Services to Take On Amazon
March 27, 2024As Walmart and Amazon compete to be consumers’ go-to for fulfilling more of their day-to-day needs digitally, Walmart is adding HVAC services to its website. Bryant Heating and Cooling Systems announced Monday (March 25) a partnership with Walmart ...Read moreCapital One May Appeal Ruling on Walmart Credit Card Partnership
March 26, 2024A federal judge ruled Tuesday (March 26) that Walmart can end its credit card partnership with Capital One early because the bank did not provide the level of service required by the companies’ 2018 ...Read moreQR Codes and Faster Payments May Hasten Rise of Super Apps
March 25, 2024Decades after being introduced, QR codes may help super apps take shape and gain even more momentum across the globe. Quick response (QR) codes first debuted in 1994 in Japan, geared ...Read moreWill Walmart’s ‘Walmarche’ Strategy Lure High-Income Shoppers?
March 25, 2024Last Saturday (March 23), legendary fashion designer Diane Von Furstenberg made her exclusive collection of 200 clothing, baby and household items available for shoppers to buy at Target. DVF, who ...Read more
Continental and Aurora Finalize Autonomous Trucking System Design
January 5, 2024Mobility technology firm Continental and self-driving technology company Aurora Innovation have finalized the design of a scalable autonomous trucking system and plan to start production in 2027. Finalizing the design and ...Read moreWaymo Via, Uber Freight Sign Partnership on Self-Driving Trucks
June 7, 2022Waymo Via, Alphabet’s self-driving trucking unit, has signed a deal with Uber’s Freight business to help future customers deploy autonomous trucks more easily, Reuters wrote Tuesday (June 7). The partnership could ...Read moreSelf-Driving Truck Hauls 40K Pounds Of Butter Across US
December 30, 2019Silicon Valley startup Plus.ai is thought to be the first company to deploy a self-driving commercial truck to haul 40,000 pounds of butter roughly 42 hours cross-country from Tulare, California ...Read moreWaymo Returns Its Self-Driving Trucks To Arizona
May 30, 2019Waymo‘s self-driving trucks are making a return to Arizona. The company’s self-driving, Class 8, big-rig trucks haven’t been in the state for more than a year, though they were first tested ...Read moreDriverless Trucks Hog the Highway to an Autonomous Vehicle Future
October 2, 2018Driverless cars are indeed coming to roads soon enough — the U.K.’s transport secretary, in fact, recently predicted that those vehicles would appear there within four years. Even so, it might ...Read moreEx-Uber, Otto Exec’s Autonomous Truck Startup Snags $40M
August 8, 2018Kodiak Robotics, a self-driving vehicle startup, announced that it raised $40 million in Series A funding, led by global investment firm Battery Ventures. CRV, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Tusk Ventures ...Read moreDaimler Unveils eMobility Unit For Trucks And Buses
June 6, 2018Combining its efforts from five divisions, Daimler Trucks is rolling out an eMobility unit. The idea behind the unit is to speed up the creation of battery-powered engines for use ...Read morePatent Applications Offer A Peek Into Walmart’s Possible Techy Future
June 1, 2018And the award for “techiest” retailer goes to … Walmart? The big-box retailer recently published a number of patent filings that would certainly make it a contender for “Most Futuristic Shopping ...Read moreUber Goes Autonomous For Uber Freight
March 7, 2018Uber Freight is finally launching its autonomous truck deliveries, with the first hauls driven in tandem with both human drivers and self-driving trucks being completed in Arizona. According to TechCrunch, Uber ...Read moreLarry Page Can Be Deposed In Uber Suit, Court Rules
July 11, 2017Larry Page, the chief executive of Alphabet and co-founder of Google, has to answer questions by ridesharing app company Uber in its lawsuit over self-driving car trade secrets. According to ...Read more
This Week in AI: Human-Like Reasoning, Robots and Open Source
March 22, 2024This week in artificial intelligence (AI) news, a new technique, “Quiet-STaR,” teaches AI to think and chat more like humans by considering various ideas before answering, improving how we interact ...Read moreNvidia Unveils AI-Powered Humanoid Robot Project
March 21, 2024Nvidia is entering the humanoid robotics field with its new foundation model, Project GR00T. The company announced the artificial intelligence (AI) system at its developer conference this week, saying that it is versatile enough ...Read moreNvidia Launches Latest AI Chips and Software at Developer Conference
March 19, 2024Nvidia is rolling out a new series of artificial intelligence (AI) products at its annual developer conference in San Jose, California, as it strives to strengthen its reputation as the ...Read moreOpenAI-Backed Physical Intelligence Aims to Develop AI for Robots
March 12, 2024A new company called Physical Intelligence has announced its launch, saying it aims to develop artificial intelligence (AI) to power “the robots of today and the physically actuated devices of the future.” “Together ...Read moreAI and Robotics Power Auto Sector’s Smart Manufacturing Drive
March 12, 2024Traditional manufacturing processes often suffer from inefficiencies, delays and limited visibility into operations. However, with the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, Internet of Things (IoT) devices and cloud solutions, the ...Read moreTraining Robots Using Video Games Could Democratize Warehouse Automation
March 11, 2024Human-like robots occupy a particular niche in the American, as well as the global, psyche. After all, from comic books to Hollywood scripts, robots — both friend and foe — have ...Read moreAmazon Tests ‘Down-to-Earth’ Robotics Amid $1.6 Billion Boom
March 4, 2024Amazon said last week that its Innovation Fund is ramping up its investment in robotics. And as a report Monday (March 4) by Bloomberg News notes, the company already has robots working ...Read moreAmazon VC Fund Expands Focus to AI, Robotics, Last Mile
February 28, 2024Amazon’s $1 billion Industrial Innovation Fund is ramping up investments in companies that combine artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. The company will focus on this area during the current year in ...Read moreExcitement and Money Flows to Intersection of AI and Robotics
February 27, 2024New advances in artificial intelligence (AI) are allowing companies to develop robots with better features and more effective human interaction capabilities. Figure AI has reportedly raised $675 million to develop AI-powered humanoid ...Read moreReport: Figure AI to Raise $675 Million for Human-Like Robots
February 23, 2024Figure AI, a startup developing human-like robots, is reportedly in the process of raising $675 million in funding, with a pre-money valuation of roughly $2 billion. Among the investors are Jeff ...Read more
Social Commerce Holdouts Skeptical of Cross-Pollination
March 28, 2024Many consumers are put off by social commerce, not wanting to have their social connection interrupted by product promotion. By the Numbers For the report “Tracking the Digital Payments Takeover: Monetizing Social ...Read moreRetailers Add Tech to Meet Consumer Demand for Biometric Authentication
March 28, 2024With consumers looking for more frictionless authentication, retailers ranging from Whole Foods to Steak ’n Shake are adding biometric payments. Amazon has been looking to remove friction from its Amazon One pay-by-palm capability, most recently launching an app to make ...Read moreHow Embedded Payments Help Businesses Own Key ‘Micro Moments’
March 28, 2024In life, and in commerce, it is often the little things that matter most. And as digitization changes the world, those little things are getting both smaller and more important ...Read moreWalgreens Taps Personalized Marketing to Reach Deal-Seeking Consumers
March 28, 2024As economic pressures weigh on shoppers’ minds, Walgreens is leveraging its targeting capabilities to keep them engaged. On a call with analysts Thursday (March 28) discussing second-quarter fiscal 2024 financial results ...Read moreMicrosoft-Backed Tutch Brings In-Store Digital Platform to US Market
March 28, 2024Tutch has appointed Microsoft veteran Greg Jones as its CEO as it expands into the U.S. market. The company, which is backed by Microsoft and already operates in Australia, offers retail technology that provides ...Read moreAmazon Debuts App for Easier Palm Payment Sign-Ups
March 28, 2024Amazon is making it easier for consumers to use its palm payment tool Amazon One. “Until today, customers had to visit a physical location to hover their palm over an Amazon One device to ...Read moreHome Depot Expands Pro Market Footprint With $18 Billion SRS Deal
March 28, 2024Home Depot is acquiring SRS, a distribution company for roof, landscaping and pool contractors. The home improvement giant says the $18.2 billion deal, announced Thursday (March 28), will speed its growth with its professional ...Read moreNew Report: To Compete, Small Businesses Must Sharpen Use of Digital Shopping Features
March 28, 2024Consumers increasingly want digital innovation no matter where they shop. Industry giants typically hold an edge in providing more digital shopping features because of their size and scale. However, savvy ...Read moreAI Proves Effective in Stopping eCommerce Returns Fraud
March 28, 2024Returns are a cost of doing business for all merchants. If not handled well, they can present a point of friction, disappointing customers so much that they’re discouraged from shopping with ...Read moreClinique Becomes First Estée Lauder Brand on Amazon Premium Beauty
March 27, 2024Some Estée Lauder Companies brands will open dedicated storefronts in the U.S. on Amazon’s Premium Beauty destination over the coming months. This rollout will start with Clinique, which announced its debut on the store ...Read more
New Data: 95 Pct. Of Consumers Don’t Use Mobile Wallets For In-Store Purchases
April 6, 2020Among its many profound impacts, the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically altered how consumers shop. Even before large-scale stay-at-home policies went into effect, most consumers sought to limit direct contact with ...Read moreREPORT: What Apple Pay At Five Says About The Future Of Mobile POS Payments
October 21, 2019Apple Pay went live five years ago yesterday, on Oct. 20, 2014. When Tim Cook took the stage a month beforehand to announce this mobile payments innovation, he shared Apple’s vision ...Read moreCuring Medicine’s Epidemic Of Noncompliance
March 22, 2018The New York Times wrote in April 2017 that the U.S. was in the throes of an epidemic for which there was not only a cure, but one that would ...Read moreMobile Wallets: Where’s The S-Curve?
February 26, 2018The classic product lifecycle that all of us had drilled into our heads in business school tells us that at the three-year mark for any new product, it’s top of ...Read moreWhat Payments Innovators Can Learn From Monkeys
January 15, 2018About 30 days from now, most of you reading this who made a New Year’s resolution will have broken it. Don’t feel too bad – you won’t be alone. By the middle ...Read moreMotivating Mobile In 2018
January 4, 2018Another year, another chance for mobile wallet players to convince consumers to give up their plastic cards and utilize the phone as a payments form factor. It hasn’t been easy. Despite ...Read moreMobile Payments 2.0: Building Better Retail Experiences
December 28, 2017Payments has by and large been a growth business for the last half decade or so, and that fact has been mappable in scores of innovations around the world. But, as ...Read moreTarget: Another Day, A New “Pay” Joins The Party
December 7, 2017For a minute, it seemed as though the proliferation of “Pays” was slowing down. Until recently, there was a tidal wave of Pays out to conquer digital with the power of mobile payments. Apple Pay, ...Read moreWhat Walmart’s Resurgence Means For Retail And The “Pays”
November 20, 2017Accomplished public intellectual and post-Keynesian economist John Kenneth Galbraith was well-known for four things. He didn’t think much of math and science — rather unusual given his choice of a profession that ...Read moreWhy Walmart Pay Is Leaving Apple Pay In The Dust
November 7, 2017Though Walmart’s mobile wallet, Walmart Pay, has not quite gotten the same level of coverage as its rivals in the field, particularly Apple Pay, it seems possible the QR code-based ...Read more