Amazon is aiming to derive savings from its robotics investment as it ups AI spending. As the Financial Times (FT) reported Wednesday (Feb. 26), the tech giant is expected to spend $35 billion on its retail network — which includes robotics-powered warehouses — to drive efficiencies and improve delivery speeds amid rising competition from the likes of Temu. Although most of the $100 billion the company will spend this year will go to artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives, roughly a quarter will be earmarked for automation in Amazon’s eCommerce business, the report added, citing analyst estimates. “We’re seeing today how fruitful this technology is in transforming our everyday,” Tye Brady, chief technologist at Amazon Robotics, told the FT, adding that the company plans to “continue to invest” in automation. The report notes that Amazon’s Shreveport, LA fulfillment center has already shown the types of savings automation can bring. At this six-month-old, 3 million square foot facility, robots are involved at every stage of fulfillment, helping the company cut costs by 25% after a tenfold increase in robotics compared with its last generation of warehouses. As PYMNTS wrote earlier this month, Amazon plans to spend $26 billion this quarter developing AI capabilities for Amazon Web Services (AWS), a level of spending expected to remain consistent throughout this year.

Full report : Amazon Banking on Robotics Savings Amid Increased AI Spending.