Amazon is adding age verification to its Amazon One palm-scanning technology to remove another checkout friction point and allow customers to purchase alcohol with a wave of their hand.
Amazon One enables users to enter and pay at some establishments with their palm as a biometric identifier. The age verification step, announced Monday, will remove the need to show a government-issued ID for adults who are buying alcohol.
The new feature is being introduced at Coors Field, home of Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies.
Customers enrolled in Amazon One can add age verification by uploading a photo of the front and back of an ID, such as a driver’s license, as well as a selfie, on the Amazon One site. Amazon says it does not store that information.
When an enrolled customer hovers their palm over an Amazon One device, the bartender will see a “21+” message along with the customer-uploaded selfie on the screen. The bartender can do a visual match of the photo with the customer in front of them, and proceed with the sale. The customer then pays with another wave of their palm.
Amazon launched Amazon One in September 2020 at its first Amazon Go store in Seattle. The technology is now available at numerous Amazon physical retail locations, such as select Amazon Go, Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods Market stores. Amazon has also licensed the tech to third parties, and it’s used at retailers in airports and at sports stadiums including Seattle’s T-Mobile Park, Climate Pledge Arena and Lumen Field.
In March the company announced it was bringing the payment technology to Panera Bread, the fast-casual restaurant chain with more than 2,100 locations across the U.S.
Age verification will be rolled out to additional establishments in the coming months, Amazon said.
