Sam’s Club deploys artificial intelligence-powered technology to check customers’ receipts

Sam’s Club is rolling out a new way to check customers’ receipts as they exit the warehouse.

On Monday, the company announced it launched AI-powered technology at 120 select locations to confirm customers’ purchases upon exit. It plans to deliver the technology to all locations, nearly 600, by the end of 2024.

The technology, which was first unveiled in January at CES 2024 in Las Vegas, is said to allow members to leave Sam’s Club up 23 percent faster. Previously, customers would have to wait in a queue while an employee would check their receipt against the items in their cart.

According to a press release, members “consistently rated the potentially lengthy wait times at exit” as a “primary pain point in their shopping experience.”

With the AI-powered technology, a customer is able to pay at the register or via Sam’s Club Scan & Go app and a combination of cameras and scanners located at the exit verifies all items in the customer’s cart have been purchased.

“When we combine this technology with our Scan & Go shopping experience, it provides a near friction-free shopping experience,” Todd Garner, chief product officer, said. “The member can simply walk out, and that’s a big differentiated experience from what we had historically.”

What are your thoughts on AI being used at the exit of Sam’s Club? Will it make your shopping experience better or worse?