Walmart Bets Bigger on Drone Drops, Adds 300 Zipline Sites

Walmart and drone operator Zipline are doubling down. The two companies signed a multi-year agreement Thursday that adds 300 new Zipline delivery sites to the network, according to a joint statement. The deal also leaves the door open for further expansion down the road.

The scale is already real: Walmart says it has completed two million drone deliveries to date. The retailer has been flying with Zipline since 2021, and it's framing this next phase as a way to push fast delivery of everyday essentials to more doorsteps across the country.

Speed is the pitch. Walmart wants customers getting household basics in as fast as 30 minutes, and it sees its own store footprint as the launchpad. Greg Cathey, Walmart's senior vice president of digital transformation, said the company's stores sit close to the communities it serves, and that pairing that proximity with Zipline lets it reach far more customers.

Wall Street noticed. Walmart's stock ticked up 1.22% in premarket trading after the announcement landed.

What's next: the 300 sites get built out under the multi-year terms, and Walmart and Zipline say the arrangement could stretch further if the expansion math keeps working.