Giant Food Stores will place robotic assistants inside 172 locations, company says

[brooklynite]

Source: Washington Post

Tall, slow-moving and gray, he has big cartoonish eyes that disguise something unique about the newest employee at Giant Food Stores: Marty is deliberate and relentless, and —— unlike his fellow employees —— he has the ability to work a seemingly endless number of hours without pay.

Though he doesn’t say much, a small message is always plastered to his slender trunk:

“This store is monitored by Marty for your safety,” it reads. “Marty is an autonomous robot that uses image capturing technology to report spills, debris and other potential hazards to store employees to improve your shopping experience.”

After a pilot program that kicked off in several Pennsylvania stores last fall, Giant Food Stores announced Monday that it will place Martys in each of the supermarket chain’s 172 stores. The robotic rollout is part of a plan by Giant’s parent company, Ahold Delhaize USA, to deploy about 500 robots to stores like Giant, Martin’s and Stop & Shop. The robots will begin arriving “in waves” over the coming months, according to Giant, which expects to have the devices fully deployed in about six months.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/01/14/giant-food-stores-will-place-robotic-assistants-inside-locations-company-says/

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[alwaysinasnit]

1. More surveillance. Sounds creepy to me.

[okaawhatever]

23. Exactly. "uses image capturing technology". What does Marty do with the stored images? nt

[NastyRiffraff]

2. I look forward to meeting Marty

at the Giants I shop at. Maybe. I don't like those staring eyes, though.

[shenmue]

3. Yipes

[TygrBright]

4. Oh, goddess, that is creepy. Lose the damn' googly eyes already! n/t

[DRoseDARs]

12. Yeah, the googly eyes can fuck right the Hell off...

Usually the meme is googly eyes make anything better and funnier. This is not one of those times.

[LisaM]

5. Yuck!

I'm glad I don't have to shop at a Giant Food Store.

Just another way to have fewer employees, I guess. Where does it end? Till all stores - the ones that are left - are staffed by machines, and no one can get a job in retail, and the payroll taxes generated by retail workers (and which can feed into the local economy) all go away?

It also really is a very creepy looking robot.

[Drifter]

6. Just wait ...

until one of those things assaults a customer.
I'm not sure what that will look like, but it's gonna happen.

Cheers
Drifter

[Ohiogal]

7. I am picturing

lots of vandalized Marty’s to be coming soon

[safeinOhio]

16. Carry a couple of rare earth small magnets..

Work wonders on computer robots.

[Javaman]

8. "just slap some giant googly eyes on it, people will love it"

nope.

looks like an upside down taser. n

[aggiesal]

9. Everyone seem to think going to an all automation system ...

is the way to go.

I personally never use the automated checkout lines.
The attendant that always tries to get me to use the one at the store I frequent, finally
asked why I don't use the automation checkout line, and I said
"Because I want checkers to have a job."

If we continue to allow automation to take over our lives, there won't be any jobs left
except service positions, like landscapers, plumbers, electricians, ... for only those that
can afford it.

Once we automate most of our jobs, nobody will have any money to purchase anything.
We will destroy our economy.

[safeinOhio]

17. When asked that question, I always say

damn computers never laugh at my jokes.

[aggiesal]

19. Whenever I see a cashier having problems with their computerized cash registers ...

I always say, "Computers, they're supposed to make our lives easier, huh?"
I'm sure the computerized cash register doesn't appreciate my sarcasm.


I like you're response as well.

[Yavin4]

10. Hal, where are the cantaloupes?

I'm sorry Dave. I can't tell you where they are.

[akraven]

22. LOL!

"Dave's not here...…….."

[dalton99a]

11. "As many as 800 million people may lose their jobs to robots by 2030"

Automation will allow workers to perform new tasks in some industries, but it won’t stop millions of people from needing to switch occupations or upgrade their skills in the coming years, according to a McKinsey Global Institute report released last year.

The report estimates that as many as 800 million people may lose their jobs to robots by 2030. Some of those jobs sound a lot like cleaning floors at Walmart.

“Activities most susceptible to automation include physical ones in predictable environments, such as operating machinery and preparing fast food,” the report states. “Collecting and processing data are two other categories of activities that increasingly can be done better and faster with machines.”

[LakeSuperiorView]

13. Spill something on Marty.

Locate that for cleanup Marty...

[NurseJackie]

14. He'll be a big improvement over the employees (and management) at my local Giant.

The need to hire better employees, but I guess they can only hire from those who apply... so many the employee training needs help. In any case, even though the Giant is closer to me, I avoid it and drive an additional 20 miles (round trip) to shop at a smaller store (but much much cleaner inside and out, and much friendlier.)

[cornball 24]

15. We have a Giant right outside one of the entrances to our "over 55" community. The

store employs a number of special needs people who are incredibly hard workers. I pray this Marty "guy" has no effect on their positions.

[jmowreader]

18. This is going to sound silly...

...but if these "Marty" robots are designed to find spills and debris, why didn't they make the things more like Roombas and have them clean up the spills they find? A "Marty The Janitor" would give the humans working in the stores more time to help customers and stock shelves.

[Sapient Donkey]

25. That would be much more useful.

[FSogol]

20. Clippy 2.0! Guess, I'll print some bikini stickers to help glam Marty/Maria up a bit!

[BeyondGeography]

21. Marty?

Why not Irv? Or Bernie?

[Sapient Donkey]

24. Wait, that's all it does? Seems more like gimmick than anything

I thought maybe you could go up to it and ask where something is located and it will take you to it. Although, even that would be a bit of gimmick because such a system could be put in place that just gives you the information. I am certain stores will continue to be automated, but I find it highly unlikely it will be done in the form of slightly less goofy looking 1960's era style robots.

[Doodley]

26. I agree. This is a gimmick to help differentiate Giant stores and to get publicity.