Circle K, an international chain of convenience stores, has announced that it will pilot touchless, autonomous checkout technology for its stores.
The AI-driven solution will be provided and retrofitted by Standard Cognition into a Circle K store located in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, with other outlets to follow.
Customers will be able to walk in, take what they like, and walk out, without having to scan anything or wait in line to pay.
This Arizona store will mark the first-ever retrofit of an existing convenience store with autonomous checkout technology.
For Standard Cognition, this means integrating with Circle K’s existing systems and working with its current store layout, fixtures and lighting, as well as their existing inventory management and replenishment processes.
There will be no shelf sensors in the Circle K store; instead ceiling-mounted cameras will be leveraged as well as proprietary AI and machine vision software to accurately associate each shopper with the items they pick up – without using biometric data.
Circle K’s parent company, Canadian multinational Alimentation Couche-Tard, said creating a frictionless shopping experience has been high on Circle K’s list of priorities for some time and retrofitting existing stores with Standard’s technology will enable the retailer to move forward more quickly and in a more cost-efficient fashion.
In this first store, Circle K customers will be able to choose to have a completely autonomous and touchless shopping experience by paying via a smartphone app, or via cash or credit/debit card at a kiosk or by visiting a conventional cashier station.
Magnus Tägtström, head of global digital innovation at Alimentation Couche-Tard, said: “Autonomous checkout is one of our innovation priorities that enable us to make our customers’ lives a little easier every day.
“We thoroughly evaluated the market and realised that working with Standard presented significant benefits since they could integrate with our existing systems and retrofit our existing stores.
“We will not have to relocate merchandise, replace shelves or build an entirely new store to implement autonomous checkout. We are excited to partner with Standard to try this technology in some of our stores worldwide.”
Standard Cognition will also help Circle K design user experiences to balance operational efficiency, shopper satisfaction and financial optimisation.
