Walmart survey finds AI training boosts associate confidence

Walmart asked its 2.1 million associates how they feel about AI in June, and training appears to make a difference.

More than 1.7 million workers responded. Seventy-seven percent of office-based associates said they are excited about AI's potential to improve their work, Chief People Officer for Associate Experience and Digital Maren Waggoner told CNBC at the 2026 CNBC Workforce Executive Council Summit in New York City. Among U.S. frontline associates, 84% said they are confident using digital tools, reflecting the AI-powered tools many now use daily.

Walmart has partnered with Google and OpenAI over the last 13 months on free learning and AI certification programs. Waggoner said associates who completed OpenAI training reported a 27% confidence gain with AI.

That puts Walmart associates ahead of broader sentiment: an August 2026 Pew Research Center poll found about 52% of U.S. adults are more concerned than excited about AI.

Waggoner said the company's approach to automation aims to reduce friction and focus work on human judgment. At its Dallas innovation lab, automation has created more quality assurance roles rather than broad job losses, she said, and customers still like talking to a human at checkout. She cited a Mexico store manager who built his own AI agent to drive fresh produce sales while still running the store.