"Barb and Peter were excellent servers. They were fast, efficient, and tidy. They were patient as I scanned the menu, deciding what to get. They didn't try to upsell me. And they delivered my order gracefully and with care. Barb and Peter are a pair of robotic arms that work at VenHub, a 24/7, fully automated convenience store that opened four locations in Los Angeles this year."
"The store is run without any humans; instead, it relies on the robotic arms to pick up items and hand them over to customers. It sells the kinds of things you'd expect from a convenience store: chips, soft drinks, basic medicines, and small electronics, with inventory varying by location. A representative for VenHub said its stores directly address several challenges facing retail, including high labor costs, staffing shortages, theft, limited operating hours, and high overhead."
VenHub operates four fully automated, 24/7 convenience stores in Los Angeles staffed by robotic arms named Barb and Peter. The stores dispense typical convenience items such as chips, soft drinks, basic medicines, and small electronics, with inventory that varies by location. Robotic arms pick up items and hand them directly to customers, providing fast, efficient, and tidy service without upselling. VenHub sells physical "Smart Stores" to entrepreneurs and brands starting at about $250,000 and charges a $2,500 monthly software fee. The platform uses AI to identify products, optimize inventory for seasonality, weather, and local demand, and refine product placement through behavioral learning, aiming to address labor costs, staffing shortages, theft, limited hours, and high overhead while serving underserved neighborhoods, gated communities, and high-traffic areas.
Read at Business Insider
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