What Walmart Suppliers Can Learn from China’s AI Advertising Boom
A Look Across the Pacific
Walmart suppliers don’t need to operate in China to take away something useful from what’s happening there. Leading platforms like Alibaba and Tencent have quietly turned to AI to sharpen their advertising tools and deliver stronger results for sellers.
While the infrastructure and consumer landscape are very different, the core goal is the same: connect shoppers with the right products, at the right time, in the most relevant way possible. The methods they’re using align closely with what retail media platforms like Walmart Connect are also beginning to offer.
Three Takeaways with Real-World Application
1. Sharpen Your Targeting Strategy
Chinese platforms are using AI to move beyond basic demographics. They now serve ads based on actual behavior, preferences, and context. This allows for more precise, more relevant messaging that feels natural to the shopper.
Walmart Connect is advancing in the same direction. Suppliers should be making full use of the platform’s keyword controls, audience segmentation tools, and performance metrics to refine who sees their ads. This kind of discipline turns ad spend into results.
2. Adapt Quickly Based on Performance
In China, ad campaigns are no longer static. Sellers can make updates on the fly—changing bids, swapping images, and tailoring offers—based on what the data is showing them in real time.
Walmart Connect users have similar capabilities. Campaign dashboards offer insights that should drive adjustments throughout the flight. Suppliers who regularly review their data and tweak their campaigns will consistently outperform those who “set it and forget it.”
3. Don’t Wait to Compete
One of the most powerful outcomes of AI-driven advertising in China is that it levels the playing field. Smaller sellers can run high-performing campaigns without needing massive budgets or in-house tech teams. Personalization is no longer something reserved for the top 1 percent of brands.
Walmart Connect offers a similar opportunity. With the right creative, smart targeting, and a clear promotional plan, smaller and emerging brands can break through and win valuable visibility with high-intent Walmart shoppers.
Final Thoughts
What’s happening in China isn’t about distant innovation—it’s about practical ideas already in motion that can be applied here and now. For suppliers focused on growing their Walmart business, the message is clear. More personalized targeting, real-time optimization, and the democratization of ad tools are no longer optional. They’re part of the new standard.
Walmart Connect is becoming more sophisticated by the quarter. Suppliers who embrace that change and manage their campaigns with purpose will be in a stronger position to convert shoppers, increase share, and build lasting momentum across Walmart’s ecosystem.
Matt Fifer
Matt Fifer is a former Walmart corporate leader and the founder of Conversations On Retail and Winning With Walmart. After nearly 13 years with Walmart in operations, marketing, and international M&A, he launched a series of companies focused on helping retailers and suppliers collaborate and grow.
Today, he travels the country exploring how automation, data, and digital media are reshaping the relationship between retailers, brands, and shoppers.