Kroger introduces in-store agentic AI shopping with Instacart
The Kroger Co. is expanding a long-standing partnership with Instacart to offer AI-enhanced in-store shopping and delivery experiences to customers.
Grocery giant Kroger, which began offering online delivery in collaboration with grocery technology company Instacart in 2017, will be one of the first retailers to offer customers access to the Instacart AI Assistant - Cart Assistant, which it will offer to customers shopping on the Kroger iOS mobile app.
Cart Assistant is based on agentic AI and designed to help customers find meal recommendations, build carts faster, and plan meals through a personalized experience.
"Interacting with an AI agent makes shopping and meal planning as simple as a conversation, helping customers build their basket or offering meal suggestions, truly understanding what matters most to them,” said Yael Cosset, executive VP and chief digital officer at The Kroger Co. “This is one more way Kroger and Instacart are making grocery shopping easy and fun for families across the country, saving them money and time."
Using AI-centric capabilities, Kroger and Instacart say they will continue to innovate to improve both customer experience and operational efficiency and reliability in online delivery. As part of this effort, Kroger and Instacart are increasing access to Express Delivery on Kroger.com, which brings online orders to customers in as fast as 30 minutes and is fulfilled by Instacart.
[READ MORE: Kroger teams with Instacart for fastest delivery yet]
Other joint efforts between the two companies include fuel-points integration across both companies' apps and Kroger’s use of AI-powered Instacart Caper Cart smart carts in stores.
"For more than a decade, we've helped grocers compete with enterprise-grade technology and fulfillment capabilities built specifically for the grocery industry," said Chris Rogers, CEO of Instacart. "Kroger is one of our most deeply integrated partners, and they've doubled down on Instacart as their primary fulfillment and delivery provider across all Kroger's digital properties. We couldn't be more excited about the next chapter of our partnership, as Instacart powers the new AI capabilities that will shape the future of how Kroger customers shop."
Cincinnati-based The Kroger Co. operates nearly 2,800 stores in 35 states across banners including Kroger, Mariano’s, Fred Meyer, Ralphs and Harris Teeter. Headquartered in San Francisco, Instacart partners with more than 1,800 national, regional, and local retail banners to facilitate online shopping, delivery and pickup services from nearly 100,000 stores across North America.
