Amazon Palm-Scanning Tech to Hit 65 Whole Foods Stores

Amazon’s digital checkout devices are set to launch at more than 65 Whole Foods locations across California.

Dubbed Amazon One, the palm-scanners were first launched in 2020 and were initially available only in Amazon Go stores before being rolled out at Whole Foods Locations in Austin, Seattle, Los Angeles and New York City. It works by scanning customers’ hands to create a unique palm signature which is then linked to their payment card. At checkout, the customer simply scans their hand to pay for the items.

The move marks the biggest rollout of the scanning tech to date, with stores in Malibu, Montana Avenue, Santa Monica, Los Angeles, Orange County, Sacramento, the San Francisco Bay Area and Santa Cruz set to receive the technology.

The retailer stressed it will not be storing user’s biometric data, though the news is likely to raise some eyebrows as privacy concerns in the digital age continue to abound. 

The expansion comes as part of Amazon’s wider business plan to accelerate contactless technology across its stores, digitizing the shopper experience to make visits faster and more sanitary in the wake of pandemic-related restrictions. It also runs alongside Amazon’s Just Walk Out-enabled stores, a novel cashier-less store design that seeks to make it faster to shop, pay and leave. 

Amazon said it plans to expand its palm scanning devices to meet the need for contactless and streamlines identification in a variety of industries. 

“We believe Amazon One has broad applicability beyond our retail stores, so we also plan to offer the service to third parties like retailers, stadiums and office buildings so that more people can benefit from this ease and convenience in more places,” Amazon said.