Amazon pioneers 'Grab and Go' retail; Al Gore has an 'extremely interesting' chat with Donald Trump, and more news
Amazon plans to go big in the small grocery store business. The massive etailer's latest bricks-and-mortar dream is to open up to 2,000 locations called "Amazon Go." They aim to redefine the concept of grab and go: No checkout, no cashiers, no money changes hands. It all happens by AI magic and the cloud, so Amazon knows what you've taken from the shelves (please do use your personal bags to shop) and tallies up as you leave the premises. It's still but a concept, but the first location is in alpha in Seattle and being readied for the public early next year.
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The death toll at a makeshift nightclub / artist space which erupted in flames last Friday in Oakland grew to 36. The inferno, which spread quickly as a crowd enjoyed a rage concert, "is regarded as one of the worst structure fires in the United States in over a decade," reports the New York Times. The cause of the blaze has not yet been determined. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images)
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House Speaker Paul Ryan made clear a "repeal" of Obamacare will take some time, at the same time suggesting ACA won't so much be scrapped as modified.Ryan told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that "clearly there will be a transition and a bridge so that no one is left out in the cold, so that no one is worse off." And, he declined to say how long this would take.
Microsoft unveiled another chatbot and is taking precautions to avoid a recurrence of earlier efforts in which users quickly learned how to get it to "spew racist, hate-filled comments." "Zo" is the company's third foray; this time the bot is limited to invite-only users of the Kik messaging platform and, as ZDNet reports, "among the topics Zo is unwilling to discuss is politics."
Al Gore met with President-elect Trump, intriguing any way you slice it: Gore said he found the conversation "extremely interesting," but divulged little else. The former VP is a leading evangelist for addressing climate change, which Trump has called a "hoax" but about which he has more recently professed an "open mind." Also: Gore also sits on the board of Apple, a potentially big target in Trump's push to repatriate offshore manufacturing jobs, and taxes. Just sayin'.
Cover Art: Former VP Al Gore talks to the media after meeting with President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower, December 5, 2016. (Photo by Kevin Hagen/Getty Images)
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7 年Trump, needs to find in his heart to reconsider climate change it is real and it can spell danger for our states
Founder & CEO @ RDEP | in-store Experience
7 年the concept is to not take away the interaction component..... this actually brings in an opportunity for the store to enhance and increase customer engagement at all the relevant touch points. the store is no longer spending time in the mundane scanning, billing and payment collection.
Teacher/Coach at Houston ISD
7 年n n
Waechter rhymes with Hector....
7 年"Extremely interesting" means "I'm not getting any money or power out of it" when Al Gore says it.
Technical Sales Leader & Strategic Advisor | Mobile Device Architecture Solutions Provider |Enabling Healthcare Through Technology | Public Speaking & Presentations | Veteran
7 年Kerry, I see it as a "boiling the frog" concept taking to the next step. Here in my small town, our major grocery store doesn't have any self check lanes. Lines at the grocery store or atrocious and watching social media, that's the main complaint and it continues to push people to other stores with more automation in the area. I think Western society sees automation as a way to get BACK to family time, social engagement, etc vs detracting from it. Tasks such as grocery shopping, car washes (remember when there were NO automatic car washes and those lines?), hardware stores, etc will continue to automate because, I believe, they are seen as distractions from our social time now. Versus helping to define our social circle. All that being said, I've made some great friends at my local Ace Hardware which has no self check :). Perhaps it's my age......