“Aldi has opened its first checkout-free supermarket where people can shop without having to scan a product. The grocer is operating a “trial” store in Greenwich, London, which allows customers to complete their shop and pay without going to a till. Instead, customers can download the Aldi Shop&Go app, and will then be automatically charged for their purchases once they leave the store. Aldi’s new store follows similar moves by Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Amazon. The supermarket’s new site will also allow customers to buy alcohol, using facial-age estimation technology, to check whether they appear to be over the age of 25.”

“UK supermarket chain Tesco has opened its first checkout-free store in central London, enabling customers to check in at the store entrance with a smartphone app, select the products they want and leave without needing to scan their purchases or pay for them at the checkout.”

“Could Starbucks give Amazon’s retail technology a jolt? A report this afternoon by the Insider news site , citing an internal document, says the Seattle companies have discussed creating a new style of coffee shop featuring Amazon’s “Just Walk Out” technology. The co-branded stores would let people buy beverages, baked goods and hot foods without going through a traditional checkout, the report says…The report cautions that the partnership might not happen, noting that it includes milestones for the rollout that subsequently haven’t been met.”

“A new autonomous convenience store in the Vantage Pointe luxury high-rise community in San Diego is off to a roaring start. Artificial intelligence (AI) and computer vision technology provider Accel Robotics opened Valet Market, a 1,500-sq.-ft. autonomous store within Brookfield’s Vantage Pointe in San Diego’s East Village, on Friday, June 11, 2021. In the first few weeks since opening to the public, the store is growing by 250% average daily customers.”

“Cashierless checkout won’t merely restructure retail business models: It will disrupt the entire payments industry. A few years ago, Amazon made headlines with its Amazon Go stores where shoppers simply retrieve items from shelves and walk out. This process has often been dubbed “cashierless checkout” but would be more accurately described as “checkout-free shopping,” as the checkout process is entirely eliminated. While most industry analysts predict checkout-free shopping to impact automation, resource allocation, and store structuring, they’re missing the biggest target: payments.”

“Netherlands-based supermarket giant Ahold Delhaize has opened Lunchbox, a low-cost cashierless store that lets consumers “shop a small format store in seconds by scanning in, shopping and walking out”. The concept is being piloted at the Massachusetts offices of the company’s Retail Business Services division in the USA. “Lunchbox is an easy, fresh shopping alternative,” says Paul Scorza, Retail Business Services’ CIO.”

“Lojas Americanas S.A. will deploy checkout-free technology from Zippin in stores throughout the country. The Brazilian retailer will use the technology in its Ame Go convenience store locations. Customers gain entry by scanning the company’s Ame Digital app. The stores will range from 250 to 3,000 square feet in size and will be located in high-traffic urban areas. Additionally, Zippin is in the process of creating an automated Ame Box checkout-free store-within-a-store concept.”

“Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) is looking at bringing its futuristic checkout-free store format to airports in an effort to win business from hungry, time-pressed travelers, according to public records and a person familiar with the strategy.”

“Cashierless stores are moving even further into the retail mainstream. In addition to Amazon, which reportedly has started testing its Amazon Go techin larger store formats, Nike has implemented a barcode-based solution at its New York City flagship store and German electronics retailer Saturn is deploying mobile self-checkout at its largest store in Hamburg. All three solutions seek to eliminate checkout friction at checkout and simplify the customer journey.”

“Consumers in the U.S. waste almost 37 billion hours a year standing in line, and a significant portion of that is spent waiting in retail checkout lines. Zippin’s patent-pending approach uses AI, machine learning, and visual cognition technology, to create the best consumer experience: banishing checkout lines and self-scanners, and letting shoppers zip in and out with their purchases.”