Online shopping colossus Amazon has launched its first physical store in Seattle - and it's different to any you've been to before.
Labelled Amazon Go, the shop has no checkout - and thanks to a similar kind of technology to that used in self-driving cars, it's able to tell what you've bought without you taking it to the counter or physically paying for it.
The cutting-edge technology works by the customer logging into the Amazon Go app as they enter the store, which tells it that you have started your shopping spree.
From that point, the myriad cameras installed right around the shop can track when a product has been taken off the shelf or put back on, and puts them in a "virtual cart". The sum of the products you've taken is then charged to your account, allowing you to just walk out the store.
The latest innovation is four years in the making, when Amazon first made plans for a physical store that would "push the boundaries of computer vision and machine learning," which culminated in the creation of the checkout-less store.
The store is essentially a fully stocked gourmet supermarket, complete with a delicatessen that supplies ready-to-eat breakfasts, lunches and dinners, artisan cheeses and locally made cheeses.
It is currently open to Amazon employees only as it is in a beta-testing stage, but will open to the general public from early next year.
Newshub.
