Amazon’s Palm Reading Technology
The e-commerce giant is swapping card readers for sweaty palm readers in its latest high-tech patent filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office.
“Non-contact biometric identification systems” would allow customers to pass their hands over a simple scanner at checkout, streamlining footfall in brick-and-mortar stores. It sounds like a game-changer by all accounts, but wait until you see the files containing Amazon’s 2,396 other madcap patent applications!
Two years ago, the company asked investors to close their eyes and imagine “Death Star-inspired” airships floating in the sky. Jeff Bezos then 10X’d those plans with an underwater storage facility operated by acoustic vibrations, a Jellyfish drone, and Alexa mood sensing.
For what it’s worth, a few analysts are trying to make sense of it all. They know the race is on for logistical dominance in retail, and at this point, many brainstormed innovations could become something. Machine-gunning them with cheap patents is a smart insurance strategy at the very least.
With patents for augmented reality-based ‘Magic Mirrors’ also beefing up Amazon’s brick-and-mortar game, it’s clear this arms race with Walmart extends to consumer-facing technologies as well. All of these inventions are for private-eyes only, but investors reckon on the hand scanner finding a commercial fit the soonest, either at Whole Foods or Amazon Go.
The company’s cashier-less new-age convenience stores have attracted curious high-end shoppers from the get-go. But even if the chain fails, hand scanners can be licensed to libraries, office blocks, secret bunkers, or wherever else controlled access is required. Leave it with Bezos. He knows what he’s doing!
