Walmart and Wing kick off 2026 with launch of drone delivery service in Houston

Wing and Walmart are laying claim to Greater Houston’s first ever drone delivery service, providing this across five stores. This is part of their plan to include over 270 stores and 40 million Americans by 2027.

The pair say that Houston’s urban sprawl, growing population and demand for speed and convenience make it the ideal first market of the year for their expansion push.

"This is our most ambitious year yet as we work with Walmart to deliver to more customers by drone than ever before, and there’s no better place to start than Greater Houston," says Heather Rivera, Chief Business Officer at Wing. "We’ve seen how much Texans value having a fast, safe way to get what they need from the skies, and we are now serving one of the largest and most dynamic metropolitan areas in the country."

2026 RTIH Innovation Awards

Drone deliveries will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards will open for entries in April. They celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Thursday, 15th October.

Check out our 2025 winners here.

Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”

“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”

He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”

Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.