Amazon’s Cashierless Store Is Almost Ready for Prime Time

DooKey

DooKey

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For the past year, Amazon employees have been test driving Amazon Go, an experimental convenience store in downtown Seattle. The idea is to let consumers walk in, pick up items and then pay for them without ever standing in line at a cashier. Amazon is vague on the mechanics, but the store relies on a mobile app and some of the same sensing technology that powers self-driving cars to figure out who is buying what. I for one welcome my cashierless overlords and I can't wait to see these stores coming to a town near me. Walk in, pick up, leave. Sounds good to me.

Employees have tried to fool the technology. One day, three enterprising Amazonians donned bright yellow Pikachu costumes and cruised around grabbing sandwiches, drinks and snacks. The algorithms nailed it, according to a person familiar with the situation, correctly identifying the employees and charging their Amazon accounts, even though they were obscured behind yellow polyester.
 
Not sure if I'm a fan of this idea. People need jobs, and being cashierless is one less job for someone.
 
Krenum said:
Not sure if I'm a fan of this idea. People need jobs, and being cashierless is one less job for someone.
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Universal Basic Income fixes the problem with millions of people unemployed from the jobs that will be disappearing in the near future from construction workers, drivers (trucks, cabs, deliveries, etc), cashiers, service workers, etc. Ironically, capitalism is ending itself. It'll either collapse and go into total anarchy, or we'll pass UBI to continue society as we know it (mostly) and become the first society to adopt real communism (similar to Star Trek's Federation economy) as Trotsky predicted.
 
Chunder said:
Universal Basic Income fixes the problem with millions of people unemployed from the jobs that will be disappearing in the near future from construction workers, drivers (trucks, cabs, deliveries, etc), cashiers, service workers, etc. Ironically, capitalism is ending itself. It'll either collapse and go into total anarchy, or we'll pass UBI to continue society as we know it (mostly) and become the first society to adopt real communism (similar to Star Trek's Federation economy) as Trotsky predicted.
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Communism has never worked or will ever work in modern society. Do you know why? Because I want more than what you have, and you want more than what I have. If you want to be owned & shackled by a government, get an early start and move to China or North Korea, if you decide on North Korea, send us a postcard and let us know how things are going in camp 22.
 
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Customer Service has already become an endangered species but with stores like that one, CS will become extinct.
 
Yes, Just think when all these Business, go cool super high tech... and puts every non-technical consumer out of a "JOB" . To whom will be around to pay for all this super cool high tech stuff......

Technology is awesome, but there is a price to pay for it.................... Whom will it be in the future...........:banghead:
 
LDFiberman said:
Yes, Just think when all these Business, go cool super high tech... and puts every non-technical consumer out of a "JOB" . To whom will be around to pay for all this super cool high tech stuff......
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Good point.
 
_l_ said:
Customer Service has already become an endangered species but with stores like that one, CS will become extinct.
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Maybe that's not true maybe CS will actually improve. The argument could be made that if you don't have to hire a bunch of people to man cashiers or take up space for checkout that companies will find it profitable to hire some people to actually help around the store. Instead of cashiers spending their training learning how to operate the computer system and so on, they may be able to actually learn about the products they are selling. My feeling is that customer service went out the door and came to all time low a long time ago maybe it was the 80s or 90s when the big lean companies like Walmart and Homedepot were exploding. A cashier does not give you a customer service experience they just take your money and make sure you don't steal. Other employees just stock shelves or take inventory. Really when I think about it, there isn't anyone in many retailers now days that is actually tasked with helping the customer with products as their primary job, its just something that happens if you run across someone doing other tasks.
 
rudy said:
The argument could be made that if you don't have to hire a bunch of people to man cashiers or take up space for checkout that companies will find it profitable to hire some people to actually help around the store.
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Sure, you can make that argument (I respect your opinion) but that won't make it happen. Companies are not like they were in the early 60's. Today, they are greed driven. I can't think of one time the past 10-20 years when a company did something to cut costs and then spent the money saved on the customer, can you?
 
Krenum said:
Communism has never worked or will ever work in modern society. Do you know why? Because I want more than what you have, and you want more than what I have. If you want to be owned & shackled by a government, get an early start and move to China or North Korea, if you decide on North Korea, send us a postcard and let us know how things are going in camp 22.
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You seemed to have missed what I said, while also being uninformed on history and confusing authoritarians wanting complete control, with communism ran by and for the people. Stalin and Mao might've called themselves communist, but just as the Nazi's party was called The National Socialist German Workers Party, while not being socialist, or a titmouse being a bird instead of a mouse, they all are falsely named. No nation has ever implemented anything close to true communism, and that's because it wasn't technologically possible, and/or it was hijacked by authoritarian dictators.

Leon Trotsky was a true communist that believed in democracy and didn't agree with using deadly force, or invading other nations. While Trotsky, Lenin, and Stalin all wanted to provide for every citizen and work for the "common good", they all differed on how to achieve that, with Stalin wanting to have total control and a "one nation" policy, whereas Trotsky was more about proletarian internationalism leading to a "permanent revolution", which he himself said wasn't possible in his time. Trotsky was favored by Lenin to continue the revolution they started, however after Lenin died, Trotsky ultimately made the mistake of working with Stalin, who ended up stealing the revolution. Stalin instituted a coup and banished Trotsky, ordered the "great purge" of his followers and those opposed to Stalin, and later assassinated Trotsky in Mexico. Under Stalin, Mao, and other "communist" dictators, 94 million people were killed from 1917-2017.

Real Communism (which again, has never been implemented anywhere) basically goes way beyond Democratic Socialism (where the gains of capitalism are redirected back towards the people that produced the gains) and replaces capitalism by removing ownership of production, thus removing the for profit aspect of everything. In short, everything done is for the common good of humanity, with the goal of first providing for every human, and then progressing and rising together into prosperity with the goal of "by the people, for the people". However, as Trotsky said back then, communism wouldn't be able to work until the technology had advanced enough to the point where everything would be in abundance, and that capitalism was needed to get us there and would replace itself (basically where the world is fast approaching, if we're not there already). It also required the energy to produce those goods to be in abundance and free with renewables or fusion power. (Again, think The Federation from Star Trek)
 
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Chunder said:
You seemed to have missed what I said, while also being uninformed on history or what real communism is. No nation has ever implemented anything close to true communism, and that's because it wasn't technologically possible, and/or it was hijacked by authoritarian dictators.

Leon Trotsky was a true communist that believed in democracy and didn't agree with using deadly force, or invading other nations. While Trotsky, Lenin, and Stalin all wanted to provide for every citizen and work for the "common good", they all differed on how to achieve that, with Stalin wanting to have total control and a "one nation" policy, whereas Trotsky was more about proletarian internationalism leading to a "permanent revolution", which he himself said wasn't possible in his time. Trotsky was favored by Lenin to continue the revolution they started, however after Lenin died, Trotsky ultimately made the mistake of working with Stalin, who ended up stealing the revolution. Stalin instituted a coup and banished Trotsky, ordered the "great purge" of his followers and those opposed to Stalin, and later assassinated Trotsky in Mexico. Under Stalin, Mao, and other "communist" dictators, 94 million people were killed from 1917-2017.

Real Communism (which again, has never been implemented anywhere) basically goes way beyond Democratic Socialism (where the gains of capitalism are redirected back towards the people that produced the gains) and replaces capitalism by removing ownership of production, thus removing the for profit aspect of everything. In short, everything done is for the common good of humanity, with the goal of first providing for every human, and then progressing and rising together into prosperity with the goal of "by the people, for the people". However, as Trotsky said back then, communism wouldn't be able to work until the technology had advanced enough to the point where everything would be in abundance, and that capitalism was needed to get us there and would replace itself (basically where the world is fast approaching, if we're not there already). It also required the energy to produce those goods to be in abundance and free with renewables or fusion power. (Again, think The Federation from Star Trek)
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Ah the - 'It'll work again this time - I promise!' argument.

So if you were Stalin instead everything would have been fine - Right?
 
Mchart said:
Ah the - 'It'll work again this time - I promise!' argument.

So if you were Stalin instead everything would have been fine - Right?
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You may want to read what I posted, or perhaps even better yet, do your own research to discover its true. Stalin was an authoritarian dictator that falsely claimed to be communist, just as the Nazi's claimed to be socialist, or Roy Moore claims to be a family value Christian. None of it is labeled accurately. A look into Trotskyism and the October Revolution and it's aftermath would a good start.
 
Chunder said: ↑

At the end of the day, UBI is taking money out of my pocket and giving it to someone else.
No.
I pay enough tax already. FUCK THAT.

The fundamental problem with socialism is...wait for it...PEOPLE. Pure and simple with the fallen sin nature of people, this is not possible. Perhaps on a higher level of existence, here on planet Earth it aint gonna happen.
 
Domingow said:
Chunder said: ↑

At the end of the day, UBI is taking money out of my pocket and giving it to someone else.
No.
I pay enough tax already. FUCK THAT.

The fundamental problem with socialism is...wait for it...PEOPLE. Pure and simple with the fallen sin nature of people, this is not possible. Perhaps on a higher level of existence, here on planet Earth it aint gonna happen.
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Exactly, that's what I was trying to tell him. Communism / Socialism is a nice idea, an idea that everyone gets what they want and everyone lives in harmony. That's all it is, an idea. A clinical person is a disappointed idealist, Hitler & Stalin were. I live in reality though & those two do not mix with reality. Maybe if we all touch the Monolith, maybe. But first we have to find it.

Also, were far from an abundance of anything on this planet. Everything we have is finite, down to the soil and flesh we have to produce it. I believe the ONLY reason why that type of system worked in Star Trek is because they had replication technology that could produce Food & Water, the very basic resource we require.
 
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Chunder said:
You may want to read what I posted, or perhaps even better yet, do your own research to discover its true. Stalin was an authoritarian dictator that falsely claimed to be communist, just as the Nazi's claimed to be socialist, or Roy Moore claims to be a family value Christian. None of it is labeled accurately. A look into Trotskyism and the October Revolution and it's aftermath would a good start.
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You're assuming that another authoritarian dictator wouldn't kill people like yourself and the rest of the 'useful idiots' to subvert and gain control of the government.

This is why it doesn't work.

We all agree that Communism as described has never been 'truly implemented'.

The issue that you don't seem to realize is that human beings aren't perfect and all aren't the same. Ultimately the term 'useful idiots' is very applicable to the condition that is trying to implement 100% communism.
 
Mchart said:
You're assuming that another authoritarian dictator wouldn't kill people like yourself and the rest of the 'useful idiots' to subvert and gain control of the government.

This is why it doesn't work.
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That is a flawed argument, an authoritarian dictator can take over in any system, even democratic capitalist systems with checks and balances if the people allow it. Germany and Hitler is a great example. A real democratically elected communist system following Trotskyism has yet to be seen in this world, but rather it's called communism or not, capitalism is leading us towards that or complete anarchy when hundreds of millions of people are unemployed around the world when automation and AI replace their jobs. We can either let them starve on the streets and let them riot and overthrow the current world order, or provide universal basic income with the bountiful profits produced from automation so they can pay for what they and their families need to survive. The only possible 3rd option would be to ban automation and continue with the current system, but that's realistically not a viable option.
 
you can't "implement" communism.
States like china are ruthlessly capitlist, the older "communist" states were formed and used that nomenclature because at the time communism was popular as seen as a utopian ideal, it was used as propaganda.

All the economic "isms" potentially reward personal greed and lust for power, all of them. Pretending one is better than the other because of propagandist nonsense is silly. There is one that specifically seeks to exploit the worst of humanities desires and that one is capitalism. That's not a good starting point for a system that is supposed to address the needs of everyone.
 
_l_ said:
Sure, you can make that argument (I respect your opinion) but that won't make it happen. Companies are not like they were in the early 60's. Today, they are greed driven. I can't think of one time the past 10-20 years when a company did something to cut costs and then spent the money saved on the customer, can you?
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I would say Amazon is actually just such a company their entire business model has revolved around offering value and savings to consumers, in doing so they make money, then they reinvest that money into creating new types of value and service to the customers. Now we have many services that are becoming common on internet retailers that were lacking in the past. 2 day shipping, prime, easy free returns etc
 
RFID has been so fucking slow in the implementation... the only problem is security will need to be HUGE onsite to keep jack-asses from tearing out the tag and walking out the door like they love to do at Wally World
 
James Robinson said:
RFID has been so fucking slow in the implementation... the only problem is security will need to be HUGE onsite to keep jack-asses from tearing out the tag and walking out the door like they love to do at Wally World
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Where are you getting RFID from? That's not part of this technology.
 
_l_ said:
Customer Service has already become an endangered species but with stores like that one, CS will become extinct.
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Better sharpen your research skills, there will be nobody to ask where something is soon enough.
 
The reason capitalism is failing, is because no one has ever done real capitalism. They call it capitalism, but it's not the real one. You've only see the fake ones. That's why it fails.

Amiright???
 
rudy said:
Maybe that's not true maybe CS will actually improve. The argument could be made that if you don't have to hire a bunch of people to man cashiers or take up space for checkout that companies will find it profitable to hire some people to actually help around the store.
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I do like this premise. Something like a concierge service or more personalized help or even, as you say, just better help. Your premise is based a more historically accurate observation that society has ALWAYS been able to adapt to new technology and ways of interaction. The electronic computer destroyed the classic computer industry, but it created so many more new jobs and industries and society seemed to move on without a hiccup.
 
Yeah wonder what the product loss due to theft will be at these stores. As it is, when I have to go to one particular store (Foods Co) in the ghettos, I literally see someone stealing something every time I go. And there's cameras, and a security guard at the front door (who doesn't do like Costco and checks receipts). I can imagine this is just the next step. Place everything you want in an aluminum foil lined bag, and buy one cheap item and just walk out.
 
Deal with cashiers in fast food restaurants in the ghetto and you'll appreciate self-serve lanes quickly. Then again, most CSR jobs are terrible and anything human-oriented can wreck your mental state quickly.
 
Who cares about this? The future of convenience isn't cashier less stores, it's grocery delivery and that is already here.
 
Shockey said:
Better sharpen your research skills, there will be nobody to ask where something is soon enough.
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and they will likely have a "computer lady voice" as the only answering service for customer complaints
 
_l_ said:
and they will likely have a "computer lady voice" as the only answering service for customer complaints
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Already isnt... except in stores like Lowe's where their online store tells you which aisle and bay something is
 
SilverSliver said:
Who cares about this? The future of convenience isn't cashier less stores, it's grocery delivery and that is already here.
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It's not just grocery- a big component of this is freshly prepared meals. They are fast, quality, and with no cashier, you can run in and run out easily.
 
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