Walmart Boss Doug McMillon Warns AI Chatbots Will Soon Change Literally Every Job

On a Sunday morning at New York's Javits Center, the retail world witnessed a moment that could fundamentally reshape how we shop.

Walmart and Google announced they're joining forces to transform Google's Gemini AI assistant into something far more consequential than a conversational chatbot—they're turning it into a seamless shopping companion where customers can browse, compare prices, and complete purchases without ever leaving the chat interface.

The partnership, announced at the National Retail Federation's Big Show on 11 January 2026, signals that the future of retail is no longer about websites or apps, but about AI agents that understand what you want before you even know you want it.

For Walmart—already America's largest retailer and private employer—and Google, this is about capturing the next generation of consumer behaviour before it slips away to competitors.

The announcement came from two chief executives at pivotal moments in their respective tenures. John Furner, who takes over as Walmart's CEO on 1 February, shared the stage with Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai to unveil what they're calling a fundamental shift in commerce.

'The transition from traditional web or app search to agent-led commerce represents the next great evolution in retail,' Furner declared. 'We aren't just watching the shift, we are driving it.'

For Walmart, this is about staying relevant in an era where increasing numbers of consumers are abandoning traditional search in favour of asking AI assistants what to buy. Google, meanwhile, is defending its turf against intensifying competition from OpenAI's ChatGPT, which launched a similar feature last autumn.

The mechanics are straightforward but transformative. When customers ask Gemini for shopping advice—say, what gear they need for a winter ski trip—the chatbot will return product recommendations directly from Walmart and Sam's Club's inventory, complete with real-time pricing and availability.

Users who link their Walmart accounts to Gemini will receive personalised recommendations based on their previous purchases. Best of all, they can complete their purchase without ever leaving the chat, adding items directly to their existing Walmart or Sam's Club online shopping carts.

The checkout experience uses Google's new Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), which acts as a digital translator allowing different retailers and payment providers to work seamlessly within Gemini's conversational interface.

Walmart and Google Gemini: How AI Shopping Is Reshaping Retail Competition

This partnership arrives at a moment of intensifying competition amongst technology giants racing to own the AI shopping experience. OpenAI and Walmart announced a similar collaboration in October 2025, giving ChatGPT users access to 'Instant Checkout,' allowing purchases of nearly everything on Walmart's website (except fresh produce) without leaving the app.

Amazon, Google, and OpenAI are all competing furiously to develop tools that blur the line between browsing and buying within the same application. For years, retailers have funnelled customers through their own apps and websites; now, the power dynamic is shifting. If you can shop from within Gemini, why would you ever visit Walmart's app again?

Walmart isn't betting exclusively on Google. The retailer has also created its own AI shopping assistant called Sparky, a cheerful yellow smiley-faced chatbot embedded within its app. Yet the company clearly recognises that controlling your own AI agent isn't enough in a world where customers are increasingly starting their shopping journeys in third-party applications.

'Agentic AI helps us meet customers earlier in their shopping journey and in more places,' said David Guggina, Walmart's U.S. chief ecommerce officer. Over time, these agents will simply make it easier for customers to find what they need, want and love, he added.

The scale of this shift is staggering. Salesforce estimated that AI influenced £192 billion—or roughly 20 per cent—of all global retail sales during the 2025 holiday season.

That's a massive chunk of commerce now touched by artificial intelligence in some way. As AI capabilities accelerate and consumers become more comfortable asking chatbots what to buy rather than searching for products themselves, this percentage will only grow.

For retailers, it means rethinking everything about customer acquisition and retention. For technology companies like Google and OpenAI, it means an entirely new battleground for control of consumer attention and purchasing decisions.

Walmart and Google Gemini: The Profound Question Of Jobs And Human Impact

Yet beneath the optimism about seamless shopping experiences lies a more troubling question that Walmart's leadership has already begun confronting. The technology that makes this shopping revolution possible is the same technology that's capable of automating human jobs at an unprecedented scale.

Walmart CEO Doug McMillon, who will step down when Furner takes over, has been unusually candid about this. 'It's very clear that AI is going to change literally every job,' he said recently. That statement carries particular weight coming from the head of America's largest private employer, which currently employs over two million people globally.

What does it mean for a cashier when checkout happens inside a chatbot? What about customer service representatives who can be replaced by AI agents? What about warehouse workers if AI optimises logistics to the point where human decision-making becomes obsolete? Furner and his colleagues have discussed these questions, but the answers remain largely theoretical.

Walmart is positioning itself as an innovator driving this retail revolution, but it hasn't clearly articulated what happens to the millions of employees whose jobs could be fundamentally transformed—or eliminated entirely—in the process.

The announcement also includes a secondary initiative: Walmart and Google are expanding drone delivery services with Wing, an Alphabet division. Walmart plans to expand drone delivery to 150 additional stores, bringing its total locations with Wing drone service to 270 by 2027, stretching from Los Angeles to Miami. This adds another layer of automation to the supply chain, further reducing the need for human delivery workers.

For now, the immediate focus is on rollout. The AI shopping features will launch first in the United States, with international expansion planned for the coming months. Walmart and Google declined to specify a launch date, and neither company disclosed financial terms of the partnership.

What's clear is that this represents a fundamental reckoning with how consumers will shop in the age of AI. The convenience is undeniable—why trudge through a store or navigate a website when you can simply ask an AI assistant what you need?

Yet that convenience comes with profound questions about jobs, worker dignity, and what retail looks like when human intermediaries are no longer necessary. Walmart and Google are driving the shift. We're all passengers along for the ride.