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Walmart is placing big bets on India, with its Global Capability Centres (GCCs) in Bengaluru and Chennai leading in the creation of agentic AI and core infrastructure to support the global operations of the retail giant. Chief Technology and Development Officer at Walmart, Suresh Kumar, remarked that the company was investing a lot in India in order to access its rich human resources and fast-track innovation in all its technology stacks.
In an interview before the Converge event at Walmart, Kumar indicated that, although AI will change the way individuals work and shop, the retailer anticipates that its overall number of employees will stay the same. The reason why we would want to invest in India is to access the large talent that we possess. The latest Agentic AI capabilities, core infrastructure, or capability. It is, therefore, a highly inseparable component of the way we operate global technology, he said.
Walmart has focused its AI initiative on its own internal development developer, Wibey, who helps with the entire software development process. The tool has already shortened the cycle of feature rollout from weeks to days. For its customers, Walmart launched Sparky, an AI chatbot which enables customers to communicate with each other through text, voice, or pictures. Sparky is also created to help make shopping easy and simple, whether it comes to luggage suggestions or when it comes to the necessities of travelling.
Walmart is a one-world unit where there is no differentiation between its US and Indian technology centres. We are one global workforce between the US and India and work on global issues, said Balu Chaturvedula, Country Head, Walmart Global Tech, in an interview in Moneycontrol. India currently accommodates more than 1,700 GCCs and employs nearly 2 million people, and the industry is projected to generate 3.5 per cent of the GDP of the country by 2030.
On top of software, Walmart is integrating AI into physical retail. Its AI-driven AR app, Wispik, assists associates in storing and finding inventory and restocking shelves more quickly. The company applies a human-in-the-loop model when validating AI outputs and depends on several models or even a third agent to cross-verify sensitive recommendations.
Kumar admitted that AI will alter jobs, but he emphasisedthe fact that Walmart will have a strong workforce. Roles will develop, though they will be person-led and tech-powered. Having millions of employees across the globe, Walmart anticipates that technology such as agentic AIs will promote productivity and not eliminate work.
