Walmart announced it is piloting an AI-powered interview coach; expanding its Associate to Technician (A2T) program to train 4,000 technicians by 2030; and introducing tools that help candidates discover Walmart roles that fit their skill sets.

“Our new AI Interview Coach simulates a realistic Walmart interview by walking candidates through up to 10 questions, scoring each response on a 1-10 scale and delivering instant pointers on structure, clarity and confidence,” Walmart said. “This will give talented candidates a better chance of landing jobs they’re qualified for but might miss out on due to interviewing poorly. We’re currently piloting the tool with our associates; if it performs as expected, it will be offered to every applicant, both internal and external.”

Walmart reported that across the U.S., its workforce participation remains below pre-pandemic levels. Thus, Walmart is building a talent pipeline to recruit skilled team members and advance current associates into management, operations and beyond—“keeping key roles filled and fueling upward mobility. Faster hiring and more confident candidates lead to consistent staffing in every store, club and supply chain facility,” the company said.

Chipotle Mexican Grill also uses AI for its hiring process. The company said the new technology reduces the amount of time it takes to hire an employee for an in-restaurant position by as much as 75%.

In the December 2024 issue of NACS Magazine, “Success Strategies for Hiring” discussed how 7-Eleven has implemented AI to handle many of the early steps in the recruiting process. It cut the 10-day hiring timeline down to three days and saw a significantly better success rate.