News • 27.04.2022

New contact-free food and beverage checkout in time for baseball season

Instacart and Aramark Sports + Entertainment unveil Caper Counter, an AI-powered point-of-sale system

A new Caper Counter terminal with drinks and food
Source: Instacart

Instacart announced that it is unveiling its Caper Counter, an artificial intelligence-powered point-of-sale system, at Boston's historic ballpark in partnership with Aramark Sports + Entertainment.

The new Caper Counter checkout systems will provide fast, contact-free transactions of food and beverage selection for fans through visual recognition and AI technology, helping to reduce transaction times.

Customers will be able to use three Caper Counters for contact-free checkout experiences at select areas around the Boston stadium, located at the Truly Terrace and Walk Thru Bru. Caper Counter's technology allows for packaged food and beverage items - such as peanuts, soda, beer and candy - to be scanned and purchased in seconds while also increasing health and safety throughout the ballpark.

Caper Counter is powered by AI - including computer vision and Sensor Fusion technology - to visually detect and identify items based on their shape, color, key features and sizes. Customers place items for purchase on Caper Counter, where they will be automatically detected and added to the cart for checkout. Customers then select 'pay' and choose from either a credit card, loaded ticket or team rewards as their method of payment, and can then gather their food and beverages, completing a seamless, autonomous transaction.

A world class experience for baseball fans

"Boston baseball fans enjoy one of the most iconic venues in all of sports, offering a truly authentic atmosphere," said Alicia Woznicki, Vice President of Design and Development for Aramark Sports + Entertainment. "By introducing Caper Counter, we are providing a world-class experience and helping fans quickly and seamlessly grab their favorite snack so they can get back to their seats to enjoy the game with their family and friends."

"Nothing compares to the experience of attending a game in person at the stadium, but we know fans increasingly want a more engaging, seamless and contact-free checkout experience. By helping to speed up the checkout experience, fans can spend less time buying their peanuts and beer and more time where they want to - in the stands, cheering on their team," said Lindon Gao, Vice President of Engineering at Instacart. "On average, Caper Counter decreases transaction times by approximately 65%. We're excited to continue bridging the gap between in-store and online experiences through our omnichannel solutions, and look forward to expanding our partnership with Aramark Sports + Entertainment in the future."

Technology & experience for retailers

Caper Counters are one example of the in-store technologies offered as a part of Instacart Platform, a suite of enterprise-grade technologies to enhance and digitize retail experiences. Caper Counter is designed for retailers that have a smaller physical footprint and stock-keeping unit (SKU) count, allowing customers to seamlessly purchase a handful of items at a time – ranging from stadiums to convenience stores. 

To power in-store technologies for larger retailers, Instacart also offers Caper Carts, smart carts that auto-detect items instantly with AI-powered cameras. Instacart Platform provides retailers access to the technologies behind Instacart's consumer marketplace to power their own digital properties and retail operations. The platform brings together the technologies retailers need to improve the consumer experience online or in-store and digitize the end-to-end grocery operation.


Find more exciting news and reports about technologies for retailers in our Technology Special for EuroCIS 2022. 

Source: Instacart

related articles:

popular articles:

Thumbnail-Photo: Jutland’s largest wine shop is successful with digital price tags...
23.01.2023   #digitization #Tech in Retail

Jutland’s largest wine shop is successful with digital price tags

Danish wine retailer Supervin benefits from modern technologies

In Hjørring (Denmark), plenty of wine is being sold at Supervin. The company's popular webshop accounts for 90 percent of the revenue, which has required new digital initiatives in the store. Supervin has therefore implemented digital ...

Thumbnail-Photo: Virtual gear for new realities
07.12.2022   #omnichannel #customer experience

Virtual gear for new realities

adidas Originals launches inaugural NFT wearables collection

adidas Originals unveils a limited collection of blockchain-based virtual wearables, released as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Representing the brand’s first NFT collection of wearables, which is a new, interoperable product category adidas ...

Thumbnail-Photo: Esso Deli de Luca improves the customer experience with digital signs...
22.12.2022   #digitization #Tech in Retail

Esso Deli de Luca improves the customer experience with digital signs

Norwegian delicatessen chain offers first-class ambience – with digital price tags

Good food and drink experiences are the most important thing for Esso Deli de Luca, which has chosen to install the Breece System with electronic shelf labels from Delfi Technologies to save time that instead can be used to deliver more quality ...

Thumbnail-Photo: Save costs with modern technologies
02.01.2023   #retail #Tech in Retail

Save costs with modern technologies

Turning physical stores into digital assets – 30,000 retail stores worldwide already rely on digital IoT solutions

Retail is at the heart of our lives and societies, as it represents more than 20% of global GDP and 15% of jobs. With consumers changing their shopping habits, stores must now reinvent themselves and leverage new technologies to stay relevant in ...

Thumbnail-Photo: Understanding challenges as opportunities
15.11.2022   #online trading #brick and mortar retail

Understanding challenges as opportunities

Last mile & more: New technologies only make sense if they are actually used

The link between online retail and the local shop is becoming increasingly important. Touchless technologies and solutions for the last mile play a special role. Modern Expo is committed to implementing these on a grand scale. Those who missed the ...

Thumbnail-Photo: EuroShop 2023 – Are autonomous stores the future of retail?...
05.12.2022   #brick and mortar retail #digitization

EuroShop 2023 – Are autonomous stores the future of retail?

Checkout-free stores: Ringing in the changes

The digitalisation of the retail industry, which has been advancing at a rapid pace in recent years, has also led to equipping physical stores with more and more technological intelligence. ...

Thumbnail-Photo: Dobot launches Nova collaborative robots for retail automation...
30.12.2022   #brick and mortar retail #retail

Dobot launches Nova collaborative robots for retail automation

New robots are the first two Nova models with payloads of 2 kg and 5 kg for handling retail and physiotherapy tasks respectively

Labor shortages and rising costs around the world are two major headwinds to the retail and service sectors, opening up new opportunities of automation transformation. To better capture this newfound demand, Dobot has developed the Nova Series of ...

Thumbnail-Photo: Online-Shopping with Apple Pay and girocard
01.11.2022   #online trading #payment systems

Online-Shopping with Apple Pay and girocard

In the last two years, people's shopping behavior has shifted significantly in the direction of e-commerce, making online business the driver of retail growth

Customers want to pay for their increasingly frequent online purchases in apps or on the web just as quickly and easily as at the stationary checkout - using their familiar and most popular payment methods from the "real" world - the ...

Thumbnail-Photo: The connected supermarket: shopping experience of the future?...
04.10.2022   #brick and mortar retail #retail

The connected supermarket: shopping experience of the future?

Bizerba presented a wide range of solutions for the retail trade at EuroCIS

A consistent shopping experience across all channels – no problem! Thanks to state-of-the-art devices and artificial intelligence, retailers can further strengthen customer loyalty. At EuroCIS 2022, Bizerba presented new solutions and ...

Thumbnail-Photo: Leading bike shop in Germany implements new technology...
24.10.2022   #brick and mortar retail #Tech in Retail

Leading bike shop in Germany implements new technology

The Radhaus Ingolstadt impresses with a huge product range. Electronic shelf labels have now been introduced

Looking for a new bike from a world class bicycle shop? If you are in Germany, near Munich, then you must visit Radhaus Ingolstadt - the top bike shop in the region. ...

Supplier

iXtenso - retail trends
iXtenso - retail trends
Heilsbachstraße 22-24
53123 Bonn
salsify
salsify
7 rue de Madrid
75008 Paris
SES-imagotag SA
SES-imagotag SA
55 place Nelson Mandela
90000 Nanterre
Zebra Technologies Europe Limited
Zebra Technologies Europe Limited
Mollsfeld 1
40670 Meerbusch
S-Payment GmbH
S-Payment GmbH
Am Wallgraben 115
70565 Stuttgart
Citizen Systems Europe GmbH
Citizen Systems Europe GmbH
Otto-Hirsch-Brücken 17
70329 Stuttgart
Captana GmbH
Captana GmbH
Bundesstraße 16
77955 Ettenheim
Delfi Technologies GmbH
Delfi Technologies GmbH
Landgraben 75
24232 Schönkirchen
EuroShop
EuroShop
Stockumer Kirchstraße 61
40474 Düsseldorf