Truth behind rumors Walmart is closing 250 stores and reducing locations in US state by 85%SOME shoppers are being duped by artificial intelligence into believing that Walmart is closing 250 stores in one US state. An AI-generated video shared on X titled “California Governor PANICS as Walmart Shuts Down 250+ Stores Across State” has convinced several people online of the false claim that the superstore would be shuttering hundreds of locations. Governor Newsom is not Pablo Escobar. The confusion comes just a few weeks after another false rumor circulated that Walmart was shutting down all 5,000 of its stores across the country. However, the video appears to have been produced by AI, and Maddow herself has made no mention of it.