The American e-commerce giant will enable other stores to take advantage of the technology already tested in Amazon Go.
Amazon successfully develops its network of physical stores where payment for goods is made automatically and there are no cashiers. Not so long ago, the first expanded format Amazon Go store was opened in addition to small outlets. But this is not all that the company can offer the retail world. Amazon has officially announced that it will begin selling the technology used in Amazon Go stores to retail stores. Such a move would certainly take retail a huge step into the future and could completely change the way we shop.
The technology in question was called Just Walk Out. It is a set of tools - sensors, sensors, cameras, and, in particular, developments in the field of artificial intelligence, which are equipped with a store. As a result, customers have the opportunity not to stand in line and not to communicate with cashiers, but simply to leave the store with goods. At the same time, payment is made through an application on a smartphone, which must be activated at the entrance, or through a regular payment card, also scanned at the entrance to the store.
This approach is fundamentally different from conventional self-service checkouts, since it generally does not involve standing in lines and any actions on the part of the buyer to pay for the goods. At the same time, stores may not completely refuse the presence of employees on the trading floor, they will simply perform slightly different functions, for example, advising customers, checking identity cards when buying alcohol, etc.
The cost of installing Just Walk Out technology for stores has not yet been reported. Equipping it with a retail outlet will take, according to Amazon, several weeks. It is also not yet clear whether the new technology provides for accepting cash payments.
For Amazon, the decision to sell technology could be a way to kickstart a new business and create an additional source of revenue for the company. At the moment, Amazon Go stores, and there are only 25 of them open in the United States so far, are more of an experimental solution for such a large company as Amazon.
