Get the latest market trends in your inbox
Stay on top of the latest market trends and economic insights with the Axios Markets newsletter. Sign up for free.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Minneapolis-St. Paul
Tampa-St. Petersburg news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa-St. Petersburg
A robot scans shelves to notify associates when stock is low or misplaced. Photo: Walmart
Walmart is expanding its use of robotic shelf-scanning technology it says will be able to alert store managers when items are running low on store shelves, or if items have misplaced, 3x faster and more accurately than human associates, Reuters reports.
Why it matters: Employment at brick-and-mortar retail operations has been declining throughout the year, even as the economy and overall employment has been growing at a healthy pace. Innovations like Walmart's will only continue to reduce demand for these traditional retail jobs.