We love awesome, smart technology here at The Modern Connection, and this new innovation from Amazon is no different. They have created a new smart shopping technology called Amazon Go that allows customers to walk into a store, choose what they want, and walk out without having to wait in line or deal with checkout.
And no, this isn’t called shoplifting. But it is the future.
Amazon has created a technology similar to that of a self-driving car that uses computer vision, deep learning algorithms, sensor fusion, and a lot of cameras. They’ve aptly named this shopping tech “Just Walk Out Technology.”
Basically, customers download the Amazon Go app onto their phones and scan the app at the store’s entry. Their shopping cart on the app gets updated each time a customer grabs something off the shelf, and is again updated if the person changes their mind and puts the item back. When a customer leaves the store, their Amazon app charges their total to the payment method attached to their Amazon account. So people can stop in to pick up a quick lunch or do a full grocery haul without ever having to wait in line to checkout with a cashier.
Walk in, shop, walk out.
The very first Amazon Go store is going to be in Seattle, WA, where the Amazon headquarters are located, and is opening in early 2017.
Amazon has long been trying to change the way people shop. For example, Amazon bookstores already allow you to purchase a book through your Amazon account rather than having to pull out a credit card to pay a cashier. In their bookstores, you still have to interact with an employee at checkout, so this Amazon Go store that allows customers to quickly and easily stop in to pick up what they need is revolutionary.
Now we’re just going to wait patiently until they open one of these new stores in Charleston!
