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from the who-is-going-to-ask-if-I-want-fries? dept.
72 years after [Clarence Saunders] attempted to patent his idea, advances in robotics, artificial intelligence, and other technologies are making the dream of a worker-free store a reality. And American cashiers may soon be checking out.
A recent analysis by Cornerstone Capital Group suggests that 7.5m retail jobs – the most common type of job in the country – are at "high risk of computerization", with the 3.5m cashiers likely to be particularly hard hit.
Another report, by McKinsey, suggests that a new generation of high-tech grocery stores that automatically charge customers for the goods they take – no check-out required – and use robots for inventory and stocking could reduce the number of labor hours needed by nearly two-thirds. It all translates into millions of Americans' jobs under threat.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Thursday August 17 2017, @06:38PM
Amazon may not be an absolute solution. But I can still use it to the maximum extent against stores that try to force me into self check out.
It may be necessary to make infrequent trips to larger stores to buy meat and grocery items in bulk to the extent that it can be stored in freezers in the garage. But if that's the game the retail stores want to play, then I can't stop them.
Young people won't believe you if you say you used to get Netflix by US Postal Mail.