As it slowly rolls out new Amazon Go locations in Seattle and other cities, Amazon is reportedly eyeing other ways to get people to experience its cashierless technology, possibly through third-party licensing and implementation at airports, movie theaters and maybe even baseball stadiums.
According to a report Monday by CNBC, people familiar with Amazon’s intentions say that the tech giant is in talks to bring its Go technology to CIBO Express retail locations at airports and to Regal Cinemas theater locations. Another source told CNBC that concession stands at baseball stadiums could also be ripe for the grab-and-go disruption.
Amazon declined to comment on what it calls rumors and speculation.
Amazon opened its first Go store in Seattle in January 2018, and has announced or opened 16 stores in the months since. A large store under construction in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood has been the subject of recent speculation.
The high-tech convenience stores operate by requiring customers to scan a unique QR code within the Amazon app before entering. Once they’ve picked up their items, customers leave the store without checking out and Amazon Go’s systems automatically debit their accounts for the items they take, sending the receipt to the app. Amazon began accepting cash after lawmakers pushed back against the cash-free Go concept.
Bloomberg previously reported that Amazon planned to open 3,000 Go stores by 2021. CNBC reported Monday that if Amazon begins installing its technology in the airport and theater locations early next year, it could have hundreds of the stores working by the end of 2020. The report did not specify whether Amazon’s brand name would be visible anywhere or if the Amazon app would be used.
