Walmart is rolling out artificial intelligence (AI)-powered price forecasting technology as looks to strengthen its supply chain.

The retailer, which has more than 4,500 stores in the US, is partnering with Helios AI, a supply chain resilience specialist for the agribusiness industry, to implement an AI platform that seeks to predict the price and availability of agricultural commodities based on climate risk to maintain a sustainable, uninterrupted supply chain.

The technology offers a range of capabilities including future climate risk forecasts that provide projections of weather and climate risk for an entire year into the future, helping the retailer estimate supply and prices more accurately.

It also provides historical prices and price estimates for fruits and vegetables to explore global, national, and regional averages and ranges, enabling Walmart to compare prices by region of origin or point of shipment, and analyse prices by variety, quality, and organic status.

The suite of features also includes editable graphs and KPIs timelines to analyse crop calendars in specific growing locations, such as areas with days below zero or temperatures above 90°.

On Tuesday, Helios announced it signed a deal with Walmart after winning Walmart’s 11th Annual Open Call becoming the first-ever Walmart Open Call winner in the software category.

The event was held in held in Bentonville, Ark and saw than 500 entrepreneurs competing to win the ‘golden ticket’, an award given by Walmart to small and medium-sized businesses that demonstrate potential for growth.

"Securing a golden ticket at Open Call grants entrepreneurs an invaluable chance to reach new customers, grow their businesses and create jobs in their communities," said John Furner, president and chief executive of Walmart US.

"Open Call is at the heart of Walmart's 10-year, $350 billion commitment to products made, grown or assembled in the US.

“This investment not only ensures that our customers receive the products they need at affordable prices but also supports the creation of over 750,000 jobs."

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