Walmart acquires robotics and micro-fulfillment provider Alert Innovation
Walmart has entered a definitive agreement to purchase micro-fullment center (MFC) developer Alert Innovation, according to a Thursday press release. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The retailer is taking over Alert after working with the startup on a multi-year pilot of the company’s robotic grocery order-fulfillment technology, known as Alphabot.
Walmart is absorbing Alert as the retailer steps up its efforts to fulfill e-commerce orders more efficiently against a backdrop of a tight labor market.
Alert will continue to operate under its existing name and remain in the Boston area, according to the announcement.
Alert Innovation, a market leader in e-grocery fulfillment automation, has signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by Walmart. Alert Innovation has been working with Walmart to customize technology for Walmart’s market fulfillment centers (MFCs) since 2016 and began piloting the Alphabot System in Walmart’s first MFC in Salem, New Hampshire in 2019.
“I am proud that Alert Innovation is one of the most innovative and capable automation companies in operation today. Our mission to improve people’s lives through innovation will now be dedicated to Walmart customers and associates which is an inspiring undertaking,” said John Lert, Alert Innovation Founder and Executive Chairman.
“We will continue leveraging our development, manufacturing and deployment expertise to enable Walmart to build and scale MFC technology in its stores. With Walmart, we have the opportunity to positively impact millions of lives through the Alphabot System,” said Fritz Morgan, Alert Innovation CEO.
David Guggina, Senior Vice President of Innovation and Automation, Walmart U.S., said, “We are committed to exceeding customer expectations and serving them in new ways, whether it’s in a store, curbside, or at their home. Bringing the best of Alert’s technology and capabilities in-house will enable us to reach more customers quicker by deploying MFCs with greater speed, providing both an unmatched shopping experience and a competitive advantage in omnichannel fulfillment.”
The Alphabot Aims To Transform How People Shop For Groceries
Last year, Walmart announced it would add automated MFCs to “dozens” of stores, incorporating technology from providers like Dematic, Fabric and Alert. It said at the time that it would test MFC solutions inside stores as well as in buildings adjacent to them.
Walmart is also in the process of building “next-generation” fulfillment centers with enhanced automation capabilities. The first of these four locations opened late last month in Joliet, Illinois.
Pricey automated fulfillment center technology has been a tough sell for all but a select group of chain retailers looking to more efficiently route the high order volumes they see. But the prospects are improving as the technology evolves, experts say. In addition to using Alert’s technology to meet its own fulfillment goals, Walmart likely sees Alert as an opportunity to sell MFCs to other retailers, adding to the growing list of tools like home delivery and electronic scanners that it’s offering to other companies.
Alert Innovation will continue to operate under the Alert Innovation brand based in the Boston area.
About Alert Innovation Inc.
Alert Innovation® is a thought leader in grocery automation, driving innovation that improves lives by transforming how retailers operate and people shop. Alert Innovation is an industry leader in robotic e-grocery fulfillment. The Alphabot® system, designed by the Alert Innovation team is a unique automated fulfillment solution that utilizes patented omnidirectional robots in a temperature-controlled system for fresh, efficient, and high-quality grocery fulfillment. Alert Innovation also designed the Novastore™, a store concept utilizing the Alphabot system, delivering a dynamic and efficient shopping experience.
Expanding Walmart’s Market Fulfillment Center Capabilities Through Automation
By David Guggina, Senior Vice President of Innovation and Automation, Walmart U.S.
We are committed to exceeding customers’ expectations and serving them in new ways, whether it’s in a store, curbside or at their homes. For years, we have been making big investments in technology and infrastructure across our supply chain to test and learn where we can make the biggest difference in fulfilling customer orders. In recent years, we’ve announced investments in technology for our regional distribution centers and next-generation fulfillment centers. Our market fulfillment centers, or MFCs, are a continuation of these efforts.
Today, we are announcing a step forward in the evolution of our supply chain and MFCs. I’m pleased to announce that Walmart has agreed to acquire Alert Innovation, a robotics automation company that develops material-handling technology for automating order fulfillment in retail supply chains. Walmart has been working with Alert to customize technology for our MFCs since 2016. Further investing in this technology will enable us to leverage our store footprint – 4,700 stores located within 10 miles of 90% of the U.S. population – for storage and fulfillment. For customers, this means orders can be fulfilled quickly and conveniently through pickup and delivery, giving them the items they want, when and where they want them. This system also enhances the experience for associates, who are integral to helping us perfect the system.
In late 2019, we began piloting our first MFC in Salem, New Hampshire, using bot technology from Alert specifically built for Walmart. The bot technology is notable within the industry, due to its fully autonomous bots that store, retrieve and dispense orders by moving horizontally, laterally and vertically across three temperature zones without any lifts or conveyors. This provides fewer space constraints inside the MFC and eliminates the need to pause the entire system for bot maintenance.
Bringing the best of Alert’s technology and capabilities in-house will enable us to reach customers quicker by deploying MFCs with greater speed, providing both an unmatched shopping experience and a competitive advantage in omnichannel fulfillment. This is part of our broader goal to introduce the next generation of fulfillment centers and continue to transform our already world-class supply chain.
We are looking forward to welcoming the Alert Innovation team to Walmart and scaling their capabilities. Bringing their expertise to Walmart will help us accelerate our MFC strategy and further strengthen our deep bench of technology and engineering talent. Looking ahead, we will continue to modernize our supply chain operations through investments in robotics and automation in our stores and distribution and fulfillment centers, creating exciting new experiences for customers that are unique to Walmart.
