Innovative Partnership: Microsoft and Kroger to Help Grocery Retailers through a New Technology

As per reports, Software giant Microsoft and Kroger, the American grocery chain have entered into an innovative partnership. Both the companies will develop a technology which will help the brick and mortar grocery business.

The move by both the companies will improve the customer experience in the retail stores. Kroger’s technology products will be powered by Microsoft Azure cloud where Kroger will test a connected store experience, and along with the software giant, jointly market a commercial Retail as a Service (RaaS) product to the retail industry.

The technology will install a network of in-store sensors and digital shelves. The digital shelf technology has the capability to improve and ease the shopping experience for customers and carry out online orders at a faster rate.

In addition, the AI tech of Microsoft will calculate customer data like gender and age, which will help Kroger to address targeted ads to customers on digital shelves' displays while they're in the store.  The ads can become a new source of supplemental revenue for the grocer.

Till now, the Kroger technology team has manufactured a series of smart technology system powered by Microsoft Azure and connect by IoT-based sensors. It has helped to transform two pilot stores situated in Washington, Ohio, Monroe and Redmond.

“Our partnership brings together Kroger's world-class expertise in the grocery industry with the power of Azure and Azure AI,” quoted CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella.