TLDR: Morrisons has launched an innovative in-app product finder, powered by Google’s Gemini AI, to help its 10 million weekly customers easily locate items within its supermarkets. The tool, which saw 50,000 daily uses during the recent Easter period, allows shoppers to quickly find products by typing queries, significantly enhancing the in-store experience and improving efficiency.
Morrisons, one of the UK’s leading supermarket chains, has unveiled a groundbreaking in-app product finder, leveraging Google’s advanced Gemini AI models to transform the in-store shopping experience. This new tool is designed to eliminate the common ‘supermarket scavenger hunt’ by enabling the retailer’s 10 million weekly customers to effortlessly locate products within its 500 supermarkets and 1,600 Morrisons Daily stores across the UK.
The generative AI-powered feature, built on Google Cloud’s robust platforms including BigQuery and Cloud Run functions, allows customers to simply type in queries for items, ranging from specific products like ‘tahini’ to more descriptive requests such as ‘that tomato puree in a tube’. The Gemini models intelligently interpret these diverse queries and correlate them with Morrisons’ extensive product codes. This product code is then swiftly sent to BigQuery, which houses comprehensive product data, including real-time availability and precise location for each supermarket. The information is then relayed back to customers in seconds, providing real-time accuracy.
During the recent Easter period, the in-app product finder demonstrated its effectiveness, recording an impressive 50,000 daily uses. This high adoption rate underscores the immediate value it brings to shoppers, particularly during busy periods and when temporary store layouts are in effect.
Peter Laflin, Chief Data Officer at Morrisons, emphasized the strategic importance of this digital transformation. ‘Having all our data in BigQuery has allowed Morrisons to create new solutions for customers that wouldn’t have been possible before. The Product Finder is a prime example of how we’re leveraging technology to make shopping easier and more efficient for our customers,’ he stated.
Mauren Costello, Vice President for UKI and SSA at Google Cloud, highlighted the broader impact of AI in retail. ‘The retail landscape is being transformed by AI, and supermarkets like Morrisons are embracing this technology to place the customer at the heart of their operations. The in-app Product Finder is a brilliant example of this in action,’ Costello remarked. She added, ‘By combining the power of Google Cloud’s data platform with the reasoning capabilities of Gemini, Morrisons can now directly answer a customer’s most immediate need — ‘Where is this item?’ — in a simple and intuitive way. This is about removing friction from the shopping journey, and we are proud to provide the technology that helps make that possible.’
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This initiative is part of Morrisons’ ongoing digital revamp and data infrastructure overhaul, aiming to enhance customer satisfaction and operational efficiency. With over 97% of UK postcodes covered by its online delivery service and its unique status as a food producer with its own farms and abattoirs, Morrisons continues to innovate to maintain its competitive edge in the grocery sector.
