The mission
Self-checkout machines that allow customers to process their purchases were invented in 1984, but didn't start to appear in most supermarket chains until the turn of the century. However, despite the many advantages these machines generate for retailers and customers alike, they are far from perfect – they are prone to shoplifting, mechanical failures, lack of accessibility, and an inadequate customer service experience.
In the last decade, a lot of companies have been scrambling to fix these problems with deep learning. For instance, cameras can monitor body pose, product movement, and facial gestures. They can detect shoplifting events or even automatically lower the checkout to be more wheelchair accessible with trained deep learning models.
Another recent trend is that convenience store chains are experiencing a rapid growth phase in most developed countries. However, they struggle to keep up with demand and pay the low wages that allow them to be...
