U.S. supermarket chain Kroger announced a partnership this week with Ocado to leverage the online grocer’s smart technology platform that includes warehouse automation technologies and intelligent online ordering. The U.K.-based Ocado, with almost $2 billion in retail sales in 2017, is an independent online grocer who recently showcased its Amazon Alexa skill for intelligent assistance at Conversational Commerce Conference London, hosted by Opus Research.

In the partnership, Kroger and Ocado will identify and develop three sites for automated warehouse facilities. “We see Ocado as an innovative, exciting and transformative partnership in pursuit of our Restock Kroger vision. Our partnership will speed up our efforts to redefine the food and grocery customer experience,” said Rodney McMullen, chairman and chief executive of Kroger in the press release.

Indeed the U.K. firm is focused on innovation as presented by David Sharp, head of Technology 10x at Ocado, at C3 London. In his talk, co-presented with Amazon Alexa, David outlined how the company is using data analysis, including AI and machine learning, for optimizing warehouse automation and smart kitchens. Through a series of audio examples, David also demonstrated the Ocado Alexa skill for ordering grocery items using natural language and how to build an intelligent assistant service to handle intents, manage dialog designs, and send responses.

To see the full presentation, check out the 2018 Conversational Commerce Conference London agenda and select presentations here.

While the announced partnership with Kroger for the first for Ocado in the United States, the company has also announced similar partnerships with Canada’s Sobeys and Sweden’s ICA, and France’s Groupe Casino.

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