Wal-Mart is going after Silicon Valley talent and investing heavily in new technologies in its push to grow internationally and take on competitors such as Amazon, Wal-Mart CEO Mike Duke said in an interview with CNBC on Thursday.
(Read more: Wal-Mart sales slip, outlook 'cautious' )
"We are clearly going to be investing in technology, no doubt about it. Whether it's acquisition or our own capabilities," Duke said. "I spent Monday and Tuesday at our office in San Bruno, Calif. We have acquired talent, the best talent in the world, the smartest talent in Silicon Valley. ... So we will invest in areas of technologies, and at the same time we are going to continue to invest in stores."
When asked if Wal-Mart was recruiting Amazon employees specifically, Duke said his company has great respect for the online giant as well as other rivals.
But, he added, "frankly, we are really having an amazing, good time of recruiting talent to come to Wal-Mart."
(Read more: Wal-Mart outlook reveals a tale of two consumers )
Along with its technology, the company is investing in its stores internationally.
"We are in this for the long term for all the markets that we operate in, and that's our cycle of the way we invest," Duke said.
Last Thursday, Wal-Mart reported disappointing quarterly earnings. U.S. same-store sales slipped 0.3 percent in the second quarter. E-commerce was a bright spot, however. Online sales are up 30 percent—growth that can be attributed to those investments, according to Duke.
"We have had great growth in the e-commerce business, and we look at the overlap of technology and our retail stores," he said. "I think that is why we are having good success. So the investments we are making are going to continue, because we see a great return on that."
For the full interview, watch "Closing Bell" on Friday at 3 p.m. ET.
—By CNBC's Cadie Thompson. Follow her on Twitter @CadieThompson.
