Sam’s Club Upgrades Scan-and-Go Technology for Sam’s Club Now

Sam’s Club has filed a patent on advancements that it's made to its Sam’s Club Now app, which is used in its Dallas-based innovation lab and club, Sam’s Club Now, which opened last fall.

After using the location to test augmented reality, wayfinding and navigation, as well as one-hour Club Pickup, the company will begin testing the advancements made to the Scan-and-Go technology that it uses as the basis of the Sam’s Club Now app. The test will launch technology using computer vision and machine learning. Rather than having to locate the barcode and scan it just right, the camera in the app will identify the product with a simple hover and add it to the member’s shopping list. The new scanning technology reduces the time needed to add a product from 9.3 seconds to 3.4 seconds.

Additionally, store associates can use the technology to reduce the time needed to complete their tasks. Sam’s Club plans to experiment with the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence to help manage member shopping lists as the next step for the app.

Sam’s Club Now, which opened in October, acts as the epicenter for Sam’s Club technology testing to incubate, test and refine solutions to help define the future of retail. The store is a mobile-first shopping experience powered by the new Sam’s Club Now app. 

Bentonville, Ark.-based Walmart, which operates Sam's Club, is No. 1 on Progressive Grocer’s 2018 Super 50 list of the top grocers in the United States.