ING partners with Dutch supermarket to trial cashierless store

Dutch financial services company ING has joined forces with Dutch supermarket chain Albert Heijn and U.S. tech startup AiFi to pilot a cashierless store.

The partners have built a 14-square-meter store in the city of Zaandam to test the concept, according to a company press release.

Customers wave their contactless debit or credit card at the entrance to gain access to the store. Then, as cameras track where they go, sensors on store shelves record whether they take a product or put it back.  

When the shopping is completed, the customer stands at the exit, sees the amount spent on a display, and the payment — up to 25 euros (roughly $28) — is processed.

The artificial intelligence system — which will be tested by store employees over the next couple of months before moving to another store later in the year — is similar to those being used by Amazon Go stores in the U.S. However, while Albert Heijn's store only requires a bank card, Amazon Go stores require customers to download a mobile app. 

With privacy a growing concern in the digital age, AiFi said in the release that its technology only registers shapes and arm movements and does not require facial recognition. Amazon Go also does not use facial recognition.

It is not clear whether Albert Heijn's automated stores will accept cash or not. Originally, Amazon Go was not going to accept cash, but after getting pushback from industry groups, the retail giant reversed its course — and now plans to accept cash.  

Amazon has a total of 15 Amazon Go stores in Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco and New York, but plans to increase that number to approximately 3,000 by 2021. Also in the U.S., Sam's Club, Giant Eagle and others are also exploring the use of AI systems to track in-store purchases. In the UK, Tesco is also looking into cashierless stores, and Amazon has a location slated for London.