Walmart Inc. will sell its AI-powered logistics technology — Route Optimization — to other businesses as a Software as a Service (SaaS) solution through Walmart Commerce Technologies, the company announced March 14.
“We have invested significant time, resources and operational knowhow into building solutions like Route Optimization, but that can be a barrier for many businesses,” said Anshu Bhardwaj, senior vice president and chief operating officer, Walmart Global Tech and Walmart Commerce Technologies. “By adopting our at-scale, AI-powered tech, businesses can eliminate the need and expense of developing their own technology, and instead focus on what they do best — serve their customers.”
Using the software to optimize driving routes, pack trailers efficiently and minimize miles traveled has allowed Walmart to avoid generating 94 million pounds of CO2 by eliminating 30 million unnecessary miles driven. and optimized routes to bypass 110,000 inefficient paths, the company said. Walmart won the Franz Edelman Award in 2023 for building and deploying this technology at scale.
Route Optimization is Walmart’s second turnkey, white-label solution, joining Store Assist, a SaaS technology that provides local fulfillment including shipping, pickup and delivery.
