Amazon will no longer use its ballyhooed cashier-less “Just Walk Out” technology at its larger Amazon Fresh grocery stores.
The company’s decision to bail on the technology was first reported Tuesday by The Information.
When Amazon announced the tech in 2016, it promised a new world of grocery shopping in which people could simply scan their Amazon card to walk in, pick up the items they wanted and walk out — skipping any checkout process with the help of futuristic technology involving cameras and sensors.
But in May 2023, The Information reported that the system actually relied on 1,000 employees in India watching all the cameras and making sure the transactions were recorded correctly. Reportedly 70% of all “Just Walk Out” purchases relied on the overseas workers.
The “Just Walk Out” program will now be replaced with “smart carts” that allow shoppers to still skip checkout lines by scanning items as they shop, the company said. There will also be more self-checkout stations at the stores for people who aren’t Amazon members, according to The Information.
Amazon will make the switch only at its larger Amazon Fresh stores. There are about 40 such stores across the U.S., including in Oceanside, N.Y., Paramus, N.J., Broomall, Pa. and Warrington, Pa.
The company will continue using “Just Walk Out” technology in its smaller Amazon Go stores and in some Amazon Fresh locations in the U.K.
With News Wire Services
