TL;DR
Sainsbury’s has added an AI feature called SmartLists to its app, DecisionMarketing and Grocery Gazette reported on Wednesday 7 October. Customers can type what they need, or photograph a list they have already written, and the app turns it into a list of actual Sainsbury’s products, Nectar Prices included, that can go straight into an online order.
How it works
The idea is to skip adding items one at a time. A list can begin with a loose request, such as “ingredients for spaghetti bolognese”, or with a picture of a handwritten note. SmartLists then maps each entry to products in the range, showing options and loyalty prices so shoppers can keep to a budget.
The same app now includes a product finder for use in store. According to the reports, it helps customers locate items and gives staff more time for customer support. Both features arrive with a broader overhaul: the retailer has merged SmartShop into a single app carrying its “S” logo, which also holds online grocery orders, ChopChop and Nectar.
Ben Edge, Sainsbury’s director of product, said the aim was “to take the effort out of creating and buying a shopping list, whether customers are typing, speaking or taking a picture of what they need”. His mention of speaking goes further than either report’s description of the feature, which covers only typed and photographed lists. Neither says whether voice input is available yet.
Why it matters
For a supermarket, this is a modest but practical use of AI, and it sits at the point where a shopper is deciding what to buy. In our view, the Nectar link is the commercial heart of it. A list that resolves to loyalty prices steers the shopper towards Sainsbury’s own offers before they have looked anywhere else.
Looking forward
The tests will be accuracy and trust. A list that maps “milk” to the wrong size, or quietly favours pricier items, would undo the time saved. Neither report explains how the matching works or how often it picks the wrong item. Shoppers will judge SmartLists on whether the basket it builds is the one they meant.