Is the search bar dead? That’s the bold question raised by Liran Hirschkorn as Walmart revealed a groundbreaking shift in its e-commerce strategy. They are stepping away from traditional search functions and embracing generative AI and conversational commerce to create deeply personalized, real-time shopping experiences. No more scrolling through endless product lists—Walmart’s AI can now offer tailored recommendations and instant customer support, fundamentally changing the way people shop.
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But Walmart isn’t going at this alone. Amazon, already an AI powerhouse, is intensifying its efforts with innovations like Rufus AI and visual search, making the entire customer journey more intuitive and connected. What’s unfolding is more than a tech upgrade—it’s a high-stakes rivalry between two giants to control the future of online shopping. The tools of this showdown? Conversational AI, AR, and social commerce, all aimed at redefining how customers engage with brands.
For businesses, this isn’t just a trend—it’s a warning. AI-driven shopping experiences are becoming the new norm, and brands that fail to adapt will be left behind. In this post, we’ll explore how Walmart and Amazon are leading the charge.
Personalization
Personalization used to be about simple recommendations—think popular products or basic filters like location and past purchases. Before AI, brands could only segment customers into broad categories, offering the same products to everyone in that group. It was a one-size-fits-all approach, and shoppers were left with experiences that didn’t reflect their personal needs or preferences.
AI has completely transformed this, allowing companies like Walmart and Amazon to deliver deeply personalized experiences in real-time. By analyzing search history, buying behavior, and individual preferences, AI can now suggest highly specific products that resonate with each shopper’s tastes. It’s no longer just about what’s popular—it’s about what you are most likely to love, right at the moment you need it.
Let’s dive into how Walmart and Amazon are using these powerful tools to change the way customers discover and engage with products:
Walmart’s Wallaby AI
Wallaby is Walmart’s specialized Generative AI platform, built to deliver personalized, real-time responses for customers. Trained on decades of Walmart data, Wallaby offers contextual product recommendations and tailored interactions based on individual shopping behavior. The AI is designed to align with Walmart’s core values, ensuring responses are natural and customer-focused.
Although Wallaby is not fully live yet, it’s currently undergoing extensive internal testing with Walmart associates to refine its capabilities. The company plans to deploy Wallaby for consumer-facing applications in 2025, with a focus on enhancing personalized shopping experiences both online and in-store.
Amazon’s Rufus AI
On the other side of the ring is Rufus AI, Amazon’s Generative AI-powered shopping assistant, designed to make online shopping smarter and more efficient. Using AWS models, Rufus delivers personalized product recommendations, answers customer queries, and even helps shoppers find the best-tailored deals. By analyzing real-time behavior, customer reviews, and shopping history, Rufus ensures customers can make quick, informed decisions during their shopping journey.
In addition to product recommendations, Rufus now offers a price-tracking feature. The chatbot can respond to shopper inquiries about price history, letting customers know if a current deal is truly a bargain by providing insights into past price fluctuations. This tool adds another layer of transparency, allowing users to make smarter purchasing decisions.
Rufus is especially active during major sale events, where it assists shoppers by highlighting personalized deals. Integrated across Amazon’s platforms, including the Amazon mobile app and Alexa, Rufus can handle a wide range of inquiries, from price comparisons to detailed product information.
Immersive Commerce
Shoppers today are no longer confined to just browsing product images—they can now interact with products in a virtual environment, thanks to the rise of immersive commerce. By using technologies like augmented reality (AR) and 3D visualization, customers can see how products will look and function in their own space before purchasing. For example, they can place a virtual piece of furniture in their living room or try on makeup virtually, making the shopping experience more engaging and tangible.
Immersive commerce bridges the gap between online shopping and in-store experiences by allowing consumers to experience products in real-time, helping them make more informed, confident purchase decisions. This approach not only enhances the customer journey but also boosts conversion rates by reducing uncertainty.
Here’s how Walmart and Amazon are using AI to make immersive commerce a game-changer in e-commerce:
Walmart’s AR-Driven Discovery
Walmart’s Retina platform leverages AR to help customers visualize products, such as furniture, within their own homes. This AR feature makes shopping more immersive and personalized by allowing users to virtually “try out” items before purchasing, enhancing confidence in their decisions. With upcoming features like Shop With Friends and AR paint, Walmart is expanding these immersive experiences to further transform how customers discover and interact with products, offering real-time visualizations and personalized recommendations.
These tools go beyond static images, enabling shoppers to interact with products in a more dynamic, engaging way, and are set to expand further throughout the year.
Besides this, Walmart taps into the Gen Z market by merging shopping with gaming on Roblox, a popular platform for younger audiences. With the launch of Walmart Land and Universe of Play, Walmart creates virtual shopping environments where users can explore, interact with products, and participate in games, all while shopping for real-world or digital goods.
Amazon’s AI Shopping Guides
Amazon’s product discovery is powered by AI Shopping Guides, which streamline the decision-making process by offering personalized suggestions and educational content in key product categories. Another standout feature is Amazon Lens, a visual shopping tool that helps customers find products by identifying objects in photos and matching them with similar items on Amazon. This makes it easier for users to navigate the platform’s vast selection by simply uploading an image of what they’re looking for.
Amazon integrates visual search for image-based product discovery and voice search through Alexa, making the process faster and more intuitive. This refined search experience helps customers navigate the platform more efficiently.
Conclusion
Walmart is betting big on immersive experiences with AR and personalized interactions through conversational AI. Meanwhile, Amazon continues to lead with smart product recommendations, voice search, and AI Shopping Guides. For brands, this is a golden opportunity. By using AI-powered personalization, you can deliver exactly what your customers need, when they need it. Whether through chatbots, voice search, or immersive AR tools, there are endless ways to make shopping smoother, more engaging, and downright fun.
As AI reshapes e-commerce, the brands that adopt these technologies will be the ones standing out from the crowd. Now’s the perfect time to start exploring how these AI tools can help your brand thrive.
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