Source: https://t3n.de/news/rewe-eroeffnet-autonomen-ki-supermarkt-in-duesseldorf-1625376
The supermarket chain Rewe has taken another step towards the future of retail: At Wehrhahn in Düsseldorf, it opened a hybrid supermarket that relies on artificial intelligence (AI) and the latest technology. With this, Rewe expands its experiments with autonomous stores, which are already running in Cologne, Berlin, and Munich.
In the new Düsseldorf store, customers have four different payment methods at their disposal: traditional checkouts with cashiers, self-checkout counters, the Rewe Pick-&-Go app, and a completely new system that does not require scanning or a checkout system.
Pick & Go: Shopping via Camera, AI, and Scale
The innovative system behind the fourth payment method combines cameras, AI image recognition, scales on the shelves, and the Rewe app to enable a mostly autonomous shopping experience.
To use this system, customers register in the Rewe app, do their shopping, and scan a QR code generated in the app at the exit. Payment is then made either at the terminal or directly through the app.
At first glance, the new supermarket looks quite normal. However, a look upwards reveals a multitude of cameras: around 800 cameras track customers during their shopping and identify them using so-called skeleton features. About 17 kilometers of cable connect the cameras and the computer system with other sensors. Based on the captured data and AI image recognition, the system knows exactly which items customers have packed. If errors occur in the captured data during payment at the terminal or in the app, they can be corrected.
The Store Concept is Not Just a Novelty in the Grocery Sector
Since 2018, Amazon has been experimenting with similar autonomous supermarkets in the US under the Amazon Go brand. Despite ambitious plans, growth stalled after around 20 stores, and some have since closed. The expansion to Europe with Amazon Fresh has so far been limited to a few locations in the Greater London area.
In addition to Amazon and Rewe, there are also smaller providers like Hoody from Hamburg that use similar technologies. At Hoody, cameras also recognize customers and their positions in the store, and scales on the shelves capture the items taken. Unlike Rewe, however, customers at Hoody must scan a QR code from the Hoody app when entering the store.
Rewe Plans Expansion
After successful test phases in Cologne, Berlin, and Munich, as well as the introduction of the technology in Düsseldorf, Rewe plans to implement the technical infrastructure in more stores. Two stores in Hamburg are scheduled to follow in the summer. According to Rewe, the supermarket on Hoheluftchaussee will then even become the largest hybrid market in Europe. The test market in Munich will also receive the new technology.
So far, Rewe has not mentioned any further specific locations but plans to expand the autonomous technology to more stores across Germany in the near future.