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FairPrice to roll out AI-powered smart carts to more stores
Shoppers can expect smart carts that slash checkout times to just 36 seconds, while supermarket staff will get an AI sidekick to automate daily operations
Singapore grocery and retail giant FairPrice Group (FPG) is expanding its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered innovations to supermarkets across Singapore by the end of 2026.
Developed in collaboration with Google Cloud, the nationwide rollout will introduce consumer-facing upgrades such as smart shopping carts and digital price cards, along with an AI-powered Grocer Genie app designed to streamline operations for frontline workers.
The move follows a successful pilot of the Store of Tomorrow programme at the FairPrice outlet in Punggol Digital District, which launched in August 2025.
By the end of 2026, 48 FairPrice Xtra and Finest outlets will be equipped with smart carts. Integrated with Google Cloud’s Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform, these carts act as personal shopping assistants, helping customers navigate aisles, offering personalised promotions, and allowing shoppers to scan and pay on the go.
According to FPG, the smart carts have successfully reduced average checkout times from several minutes to just 36 seconds.
Vipul Chawla, group CEO of FairPrice Group, said the expansion aims to remove the friction from weekly grocery runs.
“By bringing proven AI solutions from our Store of Tomorrow programme to more supermarkets across the island, we want to reimagine the shopping experience for our customers,” Chawla said. “Whether it’s with smart carts that provide personalised offers and in-store navigation or hybrid retail formats that bring together the best of physical and online shopping, our aim with the programme is to make every day a little better for all in Singapore.”
Listening to customer feedback
The islandwide expansion is the culmination of rigorous testing and customer feedback. During a media briefing at Google Cloud Next 2026 in Las Vegas, Miguel Ho, FPG’s head of process automation, shared that shopper input directly influenced the evolution of the smart cart’s design.
Initially, the pilot featured a unibody cart that could not be pushed out of the store, frustrating shoppers who wanted to wheel their groceries directly to the taxi stand or car park.
“Having heard that, we went back to the drawing board,” Ho explained. “Over the next three months, we re-engineered a new prototype featuring a removable tablet. It allows customers, after their shopping journey is complete, to remove the tablet and then push the trolley into the car park.“
Beyond improving the customer experience, a core focus of the tech rollout is improving the daily lives of FairPrice's frontline workforce.
Currently, store employees juggle up to 50 different handheld applications to complete various tasks. By the end of 2026, all supermarket store teams will be equipped with Grocer Genie, a consolidated AI-powered app, which FPG’s chief digital and technology officer, Dennis Seah, described as the staff's “new friend, new agent, and new sidekick.”
Hui Hui Voon, FairPrice’s head of front office solutions, noted that the app shifts the burden of task management from the employees to the AI.
“Instead of having the mental build-out of exactly what they have to do today or tomorrow, relying on PDAs [personal digital devices], paper, or email, we have everything powered through the mobile device,” she said.
Voon added that the app will integrate with in-store video analytics. “When there is a stock-out scenario, the video analytics will know exactly when it happens and trigger a notification to our staff for them to replenish accordingly.”
For branch managers like Sarah Jane Vasquez at the Punggol Digital District store, the AI assistant has already changed her daily routine. “New digital tools like Grocer Genie help me automate manual work like eyeballing when shelves need to be restocked and even staff rostering. This frees up time for me to lead and coach my team,” she said.
Other innovations rolling out to 48 outlets by 2026 include digital price cards, which provide real-time pricing while eliminating the need for printed paper tags. FPG projects this will save 15,000 man-hours and $138,000 annually. The group is also expanding its ShopBeyond format, which lets in-store shoppers scan physical displays to purchase related online catalogue items for home delivery.
Looking ahead, FPG hinted that its technological transformation won't stop at software.
When asked about the future of automated supermarkets, Seah noted that moving from agentic AI to robotics is the next natural evolution. The company is already exploring ways to help older employees with heavy lifting and shelf-stocking, ensuring that technology continues to serve both the consumer and the worker.
“We always believe that the customer experience will never exceed that of the staff experience,” Seah said. “As we work on the customer experience journey using technology, we need to have just as many initiatives for our frontline staff so that they can free themselves to influence the journey for the customer.“
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