The Future of Retail: Walmart's Plan to Automate 65% of Its Workforce

Walmart announced at an annual investor meeting that it plans to replace a significant portion of its workforce with automation. The company aims to have 65% of its stores automated by 2026, with a heavy investment in automation to speed up e-commerce fulfillment facilities. Walmart has a net worth of $388 billion and employs around 1.7 million US workers. The company has not disclosed when any potential layoffs may occur, but has indicated that automation will lower the need for low-paid workers.

As inflation rates continue to rise, and states push for an increase in the minimum wage, companies like Walmart may feel the need to make cuts to their workforce. Walmart has also recently disclosed that it will be letting go of roughly 2,000 employees who work in online fulfillment jobs. The company says it hopes to replace these lost jobs with higher-paying positions and create new roles as automation is implemented across the business.