Cashier-free shopping of the future

Imagine walking in to a shop, taking what you want and leaving without even a wave of your card - it may feel like shoplifting but this is fast becoming a legitimate reality, as Amazon has revealed with its Amazon Go food store.

The Seattle-based retail space has no payment counters, but uses computer vision and sensors to detect the items removed from the shop and deducts this value from Amazon accounts as customers leave the building. In order to activate the purchase, the only action required is to scan the app on entering the premises.

With no queues, packing or searching for your money the potential benefits to consumers are obvious - but with such extreme physical surveillance combined with their existing tracking of online activity, there will be few limits to Amazon’s knowledge of individual shopping habits.

The store, which was originally due to open at the end of March, has experienced tech setbacks causing it to delay its public launch. The problems are a result of the tracking system, which has struggled to monitor more than 20 people at the same time.

A new opening date for the store has not been issued as yet, so watch this space for updates!