Central to this new initiative is Sparky, an AI-powered customer shopping agent built to go far beyond the conventional search box. Sparky is part of a four-part AI ecosystem that includes agents for suppliers and advertisers, an employee support agent, and a system development agent. Together, these tools are designed to streamline nearly every touchpoint within the shopping and retail infrastructure.
The company's leadership explained that the future of shopping would not rely on keyword-based search at all. Instead, they are building a multimodal interface in Sparky that can interpret natural language, images, and complex customer requests. This shift aims to eliminate the need for customers to think in terms of search queries, enabling them to simply express their goals or situations in plain terms.
Rather than asking users to break down tasks into search-friendly keywords, Sparky is being developed to understand high-level objectives and then take autonomous steps to meet those goals. For example, someone could say they’ve moved into a new apartment and want to furnish it within a certain budget and color scheme. Sparky would then provide a fully curated shopping solution tailored to those inputs.
This approach moves far beyond basic AI chat tools. Instead of offering product suggestions based on individual keywords, the system will be capable of interpreting broader goals and executing entire workflows. These could include creating weekly grocery baskets based on past orders, analyzing pantry photos to suggest new recipes, or even guiding customers through multi-step decision-making processes for major purchases.
The technology isn’t entirely new. Sparky was launched earlier this year but faced early-stage challenges including limited accuracy and usability. Despite its initial struggles, the tool has seen a sharp increase in user adoption, particularly after it was given a more prominent placement in the company’s main shopping app. The growth in use reflects increasing customer comfort with more intuitive, conversational shopping experiences.
What makes this new direction notable is its scale. When a retailer that serves hundreds of millions of shoppers weekly begins shifting away from traditional search infrastructure and toward intelligent AI agents, it signals a deep change in the retail industry as a whole. This isn’t about adding convenience—it’s about redefining the interface between people and retail entirely.
This AI transformation is also not limited to the customer-facing side. Other agents in the roadmap are aimed at supporting internal operations and partnerships. One will serve as a digital assistant for store associates, helping them complete tasks more efficiently, while another will offer AI-powered capabilities for suppliers and advertising partners. A fourth will focus on enhancing system development processes through automation and machine learning.
These innovations together represent a strategic commitment to integrating AI throughout the full spectrum of the business. From improving inventory planning and customer service to personalizing shopping journeys and streamlining backend operations, the company is betting heavily on AI as a competitive advantage.
This agent-driven approach also supports a broader trend: the move toward task-based shopping. Instead of forcing users to think like search engines, modern retail platforms are evolving to understand customer intent and deliver full solutions. It’s a move that emphasizes personalization, automation, and ease—qualities that are increasingly expected in a digital-first shopping environment.
It’s important to note that these changes won't happen overnight. Traditional search will still exist in some form during the transition, and AI agents like Sparky will continue to evolve based on real-world testing and customer feedback. But the long-term direction is clear: shopping experiences will shift from reactive keyword inputs to proactive goal-based interactions.
As the company builds this AI-powered retail future, it’s setting a new standard for what digital commerce could look like. By removing friction, anticipating customer needs, and handling tasks autonomously, intelligent agents like Sparky may soon become the primary interface for retail engagement.
With millions of shoppers engaging weekly, this evolution holds the potential to reshape customer expectations not just in one company’s stores, but across the entire industry. As digital technologies become more deeply embedded in everyday shopping, the traditional search bar could become a relic of the past—replaced by AI agents designed to understand, assist, and act.
