Amazon’s “Go” Technology – Retail’s New OS

Amazon’s “Go” Technology – Retail’s New OS

Amazon announced that it has opened its first full grocery store – “Amazon Go Grocery” – that utilizes its cashierless checkout technology. Most interesting to us is that Amazon plans to license its “Go” technology to other retailers – effectively creating an Operating System for physical retail.

Amazon opened its first Go Grocery store location in Seattle. The store operates on a 10,400 SQFT footprint. Amazon has not disclosed how many Go Grocery store locations it will open. Go Grocery locations are larger than the Amazon Go convenience stores (now 25 locations), that have opened across Chicago, New York, San Francisco and Seattle but leverage the same camera-based system powered by computer vision and machine learning. Per Dilip Kumar – VP Amazon Physical Retail – the Go Grocery initiative is separate from the larger grocery store location (full-sized grocery store approximately 40,000 SQFT) that Amazon owns in Woodland Hills CA but has yet to open to the public (photos of each below).

Amazon Go Grocery 610 E. Pike Street in Seattle WA
Amazon Go Grocery full liquor section
Amazon Retail: 6245 Topanga Canyon Boulevard Woodland Hills CA

CNBC reported late last year that Amazon plans to license its “Go” technology to other retailers. CIBO Express stores at airport locations and Cineworld’s Regal Cinemas are two retail operations that Amazon has had discussions with. It is this licensing opportunity that we are most bullish on over the long-term.