Afterward, startups like AiFi promoted their technology to retailers who wanted to compete with Amazon on cashierless checkout. Other retailers that have worked with the startup include Aldi, which added AiFi's tech to a UK grocery store, and French retailer Carrefour.Īmazon opened the first Amazon Go store to the public in 2018. In February, AiFi said its technology was in use at just over 100 stores. But recently, it has shuttered some Amazon Go stores in New York, San Francisco, and Seattle. 'While we do not currently plan to expand this technology, we instead will continue to test and learn.'Īmazon has spent the last few years rolling out its Just Walk Out technology through Amazon Go stores and at a Whole Foods store in Washington, DC. 'Consistent with our ongoing strategy to continually look for new ways to meet our customers' value and convenience needs, we recently piloted a store with frictionless technology,' Dollar General told Insider. Both systems utilize dozens of cameras to monitor what a shopper picks up and, ultimately, charge shoppers for what they remove from a store. Dollar General, though, is working with AiFi, a startup that has developed its own technology and partners with retailers. The experience at this Dollar General seems reminiscent of Amazon's Just Walk Out technology, which the e-commerce giant debuted several years ago in its Amazon Go convenience stores. Instead, they can simply walk out with their purchases. The US's largest dollar store chain is experimenting with Amazon-like cashierless technology, the company confirmed to Insider.Ĭustomers at a Dollar General store in Banner Elk, North Carolina, don't have to stand in line or deal with a self-checkout kiosk at the end of their visit. Account icon An icon in the shape of a person's head and shoulders.

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