Why Do ‘Cashierless’ Supermarkets Still Have So Many Cashiers?

DiPLab continues its collaboration with Valori.it, the Italian editorial hub specializing in ethical finance and sustainable economy issues.

After Antonio Casilli’s Interview with the Oblò podcast on the risks and fears associated with artificial intelligence, this month we spoke with Unchained about another facet of automation: cashierless stores.

Behind the ‘smart’ shop windows and cameras that recognize products, there is in fact an invisible army of ‘data workers’ – often in India or countries where labor is cheap and union protections are weaker – who correct, label, and sometimes mimic the systems to make the experience seem completely automatic.