Amazon just unveiled details of a new brick-and-mortar convenience store that will let shoppers pick up items off the shelves and leave without standing in line to pay.
The new store, dubbed “Amazon Go,” is currently in testing with the company’s employees in Seattle, and scheduled to open to the public in early 2017. It’s part of a broader push by the company into physical retail, blending elements of the online and real worlds.
“Our checkout-free shopping experience is made possible by the same types of technologies used in self-driving cars: computer vision, sensor fusion, and deep learning,” the company says in an FAQ page for the Amazon Go store.
“Our Just Walk Out technology automatically detects when products are taken from or returned to the shelves and keeps track of them in a virtual cart. When you’re done shopping, you can just leave the store. Shortly after, we’ll charge your Amazon account and send you a receipt.”
In addition to a range of grocery items, Amazon says the store will offer “chef-designed Amazon Meal Kits, with all the ingredients you need to make a meal for two in about 30 minutes.”
“We offer delicious ready-to-eat breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack options made fresh every day by our on-site chefs and favorite local kitchens and bakeries,” the FAQ says. “Our selection of grocery essentials ranges from staples like bread and milk to artisan cheeses and locally made chocolates. You’ll find well-known brands we love, plus special finds we’re excited to introduce to customers.”
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See Amazon’s full video above explaining the concept. The 1,800-square-foot store is located at 2131 7th Ave. in Seattle, on the corner of 7th Avenue and Blanchard Street, near the company’s new campus on the northern edge of downtown Seattle.
The company is separately planning drive-up grocery stores in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood and other locations, although it hasn’t revealed official details of those. A previous report by Business Insider, citing internal Amazon documents, said the company sees room in the U.S. for up to 2,000 Amazon grocery and convenience stores over the next decade.
Amazon opened its first brick-and-mortar bookstore in Seattle a year ago and has since expanded to several other cities across the country.
