Walmart Tests Store-to-Fridge Delivery Service

Walmart is testing out a new service that could allow the super-retailer to deliver groceries and stock them straight into shoppers’ refrigerators.

It might sound wild, but Walmart is working with August Home, a provider of smart locks and smart home accessories, to give the futuristic service a test-run in Silicon Valley. 

The retailer outlined the system on a blog on its website explaining that shoppers would be able to place an order on Walmart.com and have a Deliv driver bring the items to their home. If nobody answers the doorbell, the driver will have a one-time passcode that they can punch into a smart lock and will load the items into the customer’s fridge. As an added bonus, the customer will get a notification on their phone that the delivery is occurring and will have the option to watch it in real-time from home security cameras through the August app.

Walmart is currently testing the concept with a small group of August Home customers, all of whom have opted-in to participate.

“These tests are a natural evolution of what Walmart is all about – an obsession in saving our customers not just money but also time, making our customers’ lives easier in the process,” Walmart officials wrote on its blog. “What might seem novel today could be the standard tomorrow. This may not be for everyone – and certainly not right away – but we want to offer customers the opportunity to participate in tests today and help us shape what commerce will look like in the future.”