Online supermarket Picnic raises €430 million to expand in Germany, boost AI automation

Online supermarket Picnic has secured 430 million euros in a funding round from existing investors, the company announced Friday, with the majority of the investment earmarked for expansion in Germany.

Picnic, founded ten years ago, has operated in Germany since 2018 and is also active in France. However, the company said significant investments are needed to replicate in Germany the distribution infrastructure it has established in the Netherlands.

In addition to geographic expansion, Picnic is advancing automation in its operations. At a distribution center in Oberhausen, Germany, the company is testing “robopicking,” a system in which robots place groceries into customer crates.

According to Picnic, the process is complex and relies on artificial intelligence (AI) designed to mimic the “human way of seeing.”