British supermarket Asda plans to become a cloud-first company, primarily based on Microsoft Azure.

The deal comes after the retail giant struggled to detangle its broader IT infrastructure from Walmart, which sold the business back in February 2021.

At the time, Walmart agreed to support Asda's IT systems for three years. Despite spending nearly $1 billion on the shift, 'Project Future' failed to meet the target. Nearly 10,000 workers were also underpaid last year due to an IT glitch, while customers reportedly were left unable to buy school clothes during a separate issue.

Earlier this year, Walmart granted the company a six-month reprieve on the deadline, with Asda announcing in August that it was nearly ready to cut the cord.

Now, Asda plans to expand its use of Microsoft Azure, building upon a relationship dating back to 2022. Asda will continue to use Azure Databricks and Microsoft Fabric, and use Azure as its primary cloud provider.

The two firms will launch a joint investment fund of undisclosed value focused on integrating new technologies into the core of Asda’s business. Microsoft will also teach Asda employees digital skills, as well as AI tools.

“We’re thrilled to take our collaboration with Microsoft to the next level as we accelerate towards becoming a more agile, cloud-first business," Matt Kelleher, chief digital officer at Asda, said.

"With the very best cloud and AI tools at our fingertips, this technology will boost productivity, help us to make better decisions, and simplify how we work - enabling us to continue delivering great value and service to our customers.”

Former owner Walmart is also a major Azure customer, with reports earlier this year disclosing that the company spent $580 million on Microsoft's cloud services between June 2023 and May 2024.