Morrisons Trials AI-Powered Shopping Carts From Instacart

British supermarket chain Morrisons has begun trialing shopping carts equipped with artificial intelligence that automatically recognize items placed in the basket and display a running total in real time. The pilot, at a Morrisons store in Preston Riversway, Lancashire, aims to show whether the technology can cut the time customers spend in store and help them keep better track of their spending.

How the cart works

Caper carts use cameras and weight sensors to automatically identify products as they're placed in the basket. The system weighs fresh fruit and vegetables, applies discounts tied to the Morrisons More loyalty card, and shows the current total on a touchscreen. Customers can pack items straight into their own bags and pay on their way out of the store after scanning a barcode, without transferring products to a checkout again.

An additional feature offers product recommendations tailored to each customer's shopping history, displayed directly on the cart's screen. Morrisons is hoping this kind of personalization will boost average basket value while also cutting checkout queue times.

Instacart beyond America

For Instacart, the US grocery delivery platform, the move into Morrisons marks another step in expanding Caper technology beyond the North American market. The company acquired the startup Caper AI in 2021 and has since developed the carts as a separate business line, sold to retailers as a service. In the United States and Australia, the technology is already used by Kroger, Schnucks, Wakefern Food Corp and Coles, among others, giving Instacart a presence in more than a hundred cities.

The UK trial marks Instacart's first serious test outside the markets where it has operated for years. A successful pilot in Preston could pave the way for a rollout to more Morrisons stores, since the chain operates more than 490 supermarkets across the country.

Pressure on customer budgets

Morrisons is linking the rollout of smart carts directly to customers' financial situation. A Researchscape International survey cited by the chain shows that more than half of Britons have skipped some grocery purchases for financial reasons, and nearly half consider loyalty programs the main tool for controlling spending. A cart that displays a running total and automatically applies discounts is meant to address exactly that need.

Our customers are at the heart of everything we do, and we're always looking for ways to make their weekly shop easier, more rewarding and more enjoyable - Gordon Macpherson, Director of Productivity at Morrisons

Europe's retail race

Morrisons isn't the only European retailer experimenting with smart carts. Germany's Edeka is testing carts with built-in tablets, built on technology from Israeli startup Catch, which guide customers to specific shelves and can digitally read a handwritten shopping list. Another German chain, Rewe, is trialing similar solutions. Amazon is developing its own Dash Cart system, and Walmart previously tested carts that recorded customer conversations to analyze shopping behavior.

In Poland, similar technology is used on a smaller scale by domestic startup ZeroQs, whose smart carts operate in select stores in Kielce and Wrocław. None of the major chains operating in Poland, such as Biedronka, Lidl or Carrefour Polska, has so far announced trials on a scale comparable to the Morrisons pilot.

What's next

The success of the Preston Riversway pilot will hinge on whether customers actually prefer the cart with a screen over an ordinary basket, and whether the chain sees the expected reduction in time spent in store. Morrisons has not yet given a date for a possible expansion of the program to other locations, nor disclosed the cost of deploying Instacart's technology.