In January, Amazon opened its first ‘grab and go’ grocery convenience store. Aptly named Amazon Go, the concept store allows customers to walk in, pick out what they need, and simply walk out without standing in a check out line or swiping a credit card.
After opening their very first store in Seattle, Amazon wants to expand in two more cities: Chicago and San Francisco. While they have declined to offer any opening dates, according to real-estate tracker Curbed, Amazon already has a building permit for the construction of a store in Chicago’s Loop district. Additionally, there are job ads that indicate the company’s on the lookout for people to manage the two upcoming stores.
Amazon first tested the store’s concept and technology with its own employees, using the trial run to refine the system before its official opening. The idea was simple: shoppers scan their Go app once when they enter the store and that’s about it. The store’s sensors, cameras, and AI (artificial intelligence) technology track what goes in the shopper’s bags and Amazon charges their account automatically.
In spite of a few setbacks and general awkwardness caused by simply walking out of a shop without paying in a traditional sense, the whole process seems to have run quite smoothly. While it might take some time to get used to, it’s promising that Amazon is looking into new store locations.
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