United StatesRetail and e-commerce2025 – ongoingAce Hardware
Hey ARMA product assistant for store associates
Ace Hardware launched its employee AI assistant in more than 2,300 stores
Problem
Store associates needed to answer customer questions across a broad product catalog. Finding product details could take time away from customers.
Approach
Ace built Hey ARMA internally using external large language models and existing data. The assistant supplied product guidance and comparisons through its retailer mobile platform. Development began in 2025, and Ace reported deployment in more than 2,300 stores by May 2026.
Results
Takeaway
Ace built an internal development team to retain control over the assistant and develop skills for further AI projects. The reported store count measured deployment, rather than service improvement.
Categories
- Size
- Large enterprise
- Industry
- Retail and e-commerce
- Business function
- Customer serviceInternal work and knowledge management
- Innovation type
- Process innovation
- AI technology
- Generative AIConversational and voice AI
- Adoption
- Built in-house
- Evidence
- Company's own claim
Sources
Source summaries
An executive interview described Ace's internal development approach and the assistant's store uses. Ace reported deployment in more than 2,300 stores without quantifying changes in customer service.
Full details are in the original sources.