ATLANTA — Atlanta is the latest target for Walmart’s expanding Global Tech enterprise.
The U.S. retail behemoth, which holds the top spot on the Forbes Fortune 500 list, announced it will open a tech hub in the city, along with an additional outpost in Toronto, according to reporting from 11Alive's news partner the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Few details about the planned expansion were announced, including its location or the number of jobs it will create.
The first round of hiring will see 140 full-time jobs in cybersecurity, software development and data science, among other fields. The company plans to add 5,000 jobs across all Global Tech outposts this fiscal year.
Walmart said it chose Atlanta because of its growing tech presence and diverse talent base, two reasons often cited by major tech firms relocating to or opening new hubs in the city.
If the company were to follow in the footsteps of these tech firms, it will flock to Midtown, the nucleus of the city's tech ecosystem. The newly-emergent West Midtown market, however, is also a viable option, as it is seeing the delivery of several new office towers in 2022 and 2023, including the second phase of the Interlock and 8West.
There is a possibility Walmart is headed outside of Fulton County, however. At a Buckhead Rotary Club meeting this month, President and CEO of Braves Development Co. Mike Plant announced he was in the final stages of luring a Fortune 100 company to a new office tower at The Battery.
The Atlanta and Toronto outposts will join 15 other Walmart Global Tech hubs, including locations in Austin and Dallas, Silicon Valley, Seattle and Charlotte.