Walmart's Machine Customer
A year ago a fascinating article in HBR revealed how Walmart has been evolving the use of AI-based chatbots to negotiate with its suppliers. The world's largest company by revenue uses software from Pactum to negotiate for goods that are 'not for resale'. That means its custobot is not automating negotiations for beans and butter but it is for buying shopping carts and fleet services. This is a B2B example of getting a machine to do the work of being a customer.
Walmart has many thousands of smaller suppliers who would prefer to sell by negotiating terms, rather than signing a standard template agreement. However, it would be unfeasible for Walmart to hire thousands of additional purchasing specialists to make that happen. If negotiation can take place, both sides will get some of the flexibility they want. So if a machine can do the work of being an active customer, everybody can get a better result.
This Walmart example arrived just after we completed the manuscript for our book about Machine Customers. However, we have added mention of it to the second edition published in September. Available from Amazon.com.