Walmart's 2025 Open Call Application Process Now Active
In a bid to close infrastructure and tool gaps in U.S. manufacturing and unlock new possibilities, Walmart has opened submissions for manufacturing innovation pitches via an online form. This year's Open Call, which is part of Walmart's broader $350 billion commitment to products made, grown, or assembled in the United States, also accepts applications for innovative companies developing breakthrough technologies.
Since its inception in 2014, Walmart's Open Call has helped thousands of small and medium businesses grow their operations. This year, the programme has expanded its scope beyond just products to include manufacturing innovation and technology solutions. The specific innovation categories highlighted for 2025 are Yield Insights, Shelf-Life Extension, Alternative Materials, and Advanced Manufacturing.
Walmart is specifically looking for manufacturing innovations in these categories. Yield Insights technologies or processes aim to improve production yield and efficiency. Shelf-Life Extension innovations help extend the shelf life of products. Alternative Materials solutions enable the use of new, sustainable, or cost-effective materials. Advanced Manufacturing refers to cutting-edge manufacturing technologies that reduce complexity, cost, or environmental impact in U.S. manufacturing.
The deadline to submit applications for Open Call 2025 is July 25, 2025. Applicants selected to pitch will be notified on September 2, 2025, and invited to participate in the event on October 7–8, 2025, at Walmart’s new campus in Arkansas. A select group of companies will be invited to participate in this year's Open Call experience alongside product-based applicants.
Walmart's "Buy American" initiative, initiated 40 years ago by Sam Walton, continues to support U.S. products and their innovations. In April, Walmart unveiled its Grow with US, a new program designed to provide U.S. small businesses with the training, mentorship, and resources they need to find success with the retail giant.
With FY2025 revenue of $681 billion, the company employs approximately 2.1 million associates worldwide. Each week, approximately 270 million customers and members visit Walmart's more than 10,750 stores and numerous e-commerce websites in 19 countries. Bentonville, Ark.-based Walmart U.S. is No. 1 on Progressive Grocer's 2025 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.
"This is in our DNA," Fremstad said. "Supporting American-made products has been part of our story since the beginning, and it will be for decades to come."
U.S. entrepreneurs have the opportunity to pitch their innovations to Walmart and Sam's Club merchants. This is a chance for American innovators to make their mark in the manufacturing sector and contribute to Walmart's commitment to supporting U.S. products and their innovations.
In this year's Open Call, which is part of Walmart's $350 billion commitment to products made in the United States, innovative companies developing breakthrough technologies in the retail, finance, and industry sectors, particularly in categories such as Yield Insights, Shelf-Life Extension, Alternative Materials, and Advanced Manufacturing, have the opportunity to pitch their ideas. The "Buy American" initiative, initiated by Sam Walton, continues to support U.S. businesses and their innovations, creating a chance for entrepreneurs to make their mark in the manufacturing sector and contribute to Walmart's commitment to U.S. products and their innovations.
