Amazon has decided to abandon Just Walk Out technology in the United States, writes The Information. It allowed customers to grab items and leave the store without going through a register.
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The tech giant first launched its Just Walk Out self-service system in 2018. It records everything purchased and enters the merchandise into a virtual receipt. If the buyer changes their mind about paying for the item, simply place it on the shelf and the system will remove the item from the virtual cart. After completing purchases, the user receives an invoice.
The system worked on the basis of cameras, sensors and observation of ordinary workers. However, this format encountered problems in the initial stage.
As the publication writes, the format only created the illusion of automation, but in reality, in the absence of cashiers, more than a thousand people in India watched videos from surveillance cameras to accurately calculate purchases.
At the same time, the installation and support of equipment for this format is quite expensive for the company. Since its inception, it has been implemented in only half of Fresh stores in the United States.
Previously, consumers have repeatedly complained about problems when using this system. For example, checks were sent to customers a few hours after purchase.
The issue of customer privacy raised other issues, as installed cameras and sensors collect biometric data. They recognize the size and body shape of each client. In this sense, Amazon was even sued.
Having abandoned the format, Amazon will redirect resources to the development of the Dash Carts project, which tracks items in customers’ baskets.
Author:
Natalia Gormaleva
Source: RB
I am a professional journalist and content creator with extensive experience writing for news websites. I currently work as an author at Gadget Onus, where I specialize in covering hot news topics. My written pieces have been published on some of the biggest media outlets around the world, including The Guardian and BBC News.
