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Walmart tests straight-to-fridge delivery service

The retail giant is working in partnership with August Home.

Nicholas Tufnell Associate Editor
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Steve Heap, Getty Images/Canopy

Walmart is testing a new service in partnership with August Home, a smart lock and smart home accessory company, that promises to deliver groceries straight to customers' refrigerators .

Here's how it works, according to Walmart's blog: First, you place an order on the Walmart website for your items, which can include groceries. Once the order is ready, a Deliv driver will bring it to your home. If no one answers the doorbell, he or she will have a one-time passcode that you've preauthorised, which will open your home's smart lock.

The moment the Deliv driver rings your doorbell, you'll receive a notification on your phone that the delivery is occurring and, if you choose, you can watch the delivery take place in real time from your home security cameras through the August app. The Deliv driver will then stock up your fridge and leave.

Walmart says that these tests are a natural evolution of what Walmart is all about -- "an obsession in saving our customers not just money but also time, making our customers' lives easier in the process."

The service is currently being trialled in Silicon Valley with a handful of August Home customers.