Instacart’s New AI-Powered Store View and Second Store Check Features Wants to End Your Out-of-Stock Grocery Woes

We’re all for a more convenient way to tackle tedious weekly chores, including grocery shopping. The real snag is when that optimized solution turns into a headache — especially if the store is out of stock of the one item you really needed in your delivery order.

Instacart is addressing that common annoyance with new AI-powered inventory tools, the company announced this week. Its two “major” innovations — Store View and Second Store Check — will launch in-app this week as Instacart further integrates artificial intelligence into the platform. 

“Grocery shopping is such an integral part of everyday life, and when you order through Instacart, it matters that the items you want will be delivered. That’s why we’re leveraging technology, like AI and real-time insights, to accurately track what’s on store shelves,” chief product officer Daniel Danker tells Food & Wine. 

Ask anyone who has ordered groceries via an app — it’s not unusual to encounter an out-of-stock product or brand. (In the announcement, Instacart cites a study from the ECR Retail Loss Group showing that estimates suggest as much as 60% of inventory records are inaccurate.) Currently, an Instacart shopper may contact you for a replacement or refund for a missing item, which can be an annoyance and a pain point for customers. 

“This ensures that when something is out of stock, we can provide a reliable alternative, so you can count on getting what you need, when you need it,” Danker says. 

Store View and sensor-outfitted shopping carts 

Instacart has already developed an extensive infrastructure to predict, assess, and learn from product availability — but this latest launch will use AI to analyze store imagery captured directly by shoppers. 

Instacart’s latest Store View technology will review aisle-by-aisle videos to update its inventory counts and further refine its existing prediction models. To enable this, Instacart is leveraging its network of 600,000 independent workers — describing it as a new “earning opportunity” for shoppers. As the company states, eligible workers will be tasked with filming videos of grocery aisles, which will then be assessed by Instacart’s newest AI tool. 

Otherwise, Instacart shoppers will continue using “Caper Carts,” which are equipped with sensors and AI technology. Launched in late 2024, these high-tech carts use multiple cameras, a digital scale, and sensors to monitor what’s going on in the cart. On a more futuristic note, Instacart is exploring heat maps that analyze retail traffic and grocery buying patterns. Additionally, hour-by-hour inventory updates may be on the horizon 

Out of stock? Instacart will make a second stop

If an item is out of stock and a substitution just won’t cut it, Instacart will give you another chance. With Second Store Check, another feature introduced in this rollout, your Instacart shopper will team up with another worker to deliver that missing item. If a store is missing an item, Instacart will automatically prompt another shopper at another nearby store to look for — and hopefully, track down — that out-of-stock product.

“Thanks to our unmatched scale and density, a second shopper might already be shopping items for another order on the very same aisle as the item you’re looking for,” Danker explains in a statement.

As with any new update to a workflow, we’ll need to allow some time before we hear shoppers’ feedback on this model.

New features already on the Instacart app 

This isn’t Instacart’s first venture into the world of artificial intelligence. Earlier this month, the platform introduced new search and recommendation tools for folks with specific dietary preferences.

Smart Shop, which is already integrated into the delivery app, allows users to specify their grocery needs (such as “vegan” or “high protein”) and enjoy a more personalized shopping experience. It also facilitates product discovery and tailors the store interface to your specific needs. Meanwhile, this latest feature will focus on the specific availability of products that shoppers wish to purchase. 

“By customizing your shopping journey to match your personal health goals or fit your dietary restrictions, we can unlock possibilities that weren’t even on the table before,” Danker shared in the March 18 announcement. 

Nowadays, it’s common to see social media users make light of Instacart shoppers’ most outlandish substitutions for out-of-stock items. In an ideal world, everything would already be in stock — but despite imperfections, Instacart seems to be willing to make it right.