A convenience store in Yokohama, Japan is using AI-powered cameras to spot and prevent people from shoplifting. According to reports, the artificial intelligence software behind the smart cameras was developed by the Japanese AI startup Vaak.
The cameras, powered by machine learning algorithms, analyze live footage of customers within the store. The AI software determines potential shoplifters by looking at unusual behaviors like restlessness, fidgeting, and other suspicious body language.
According to Vaak, their goal is to prevent suspected individuals from committing theft by letting store staff approach them. The company believes that asking the targets for help could stop them from shoplifting.
Ryo Tanaka, CEO of Vaak, said in an interview:
“I thought then, ‘Ah, at last! We took an important step closer to a society where crime can be prevented with AI.”
AI-Powered Cameras
Last 2017, Tyco Retail Solutions reported that shoplifting had cost the retail industry about $34 billion USD in lost sales worldwide. Gartner Inc. predicted that retailers would invest around $200 billion in new technologies to fight shoplifting this year.
Thomas O’Connor, a retail analyst at Gartner, said:
“If we go into many retailers whether in the U.S. or U.K., there are very often going to be CCTV cameras or some form of cameras within the store operation. That’s being leveraged by linking it to an analytics tool, which can then do the actual analysis in a more efficient and effective way.”
Since security is now among the key priorities of retailers, AI software makers like Vaak will not to disclose the names of companies using their technology. While it’s not confirmed, it is now safe to assume that many retail companies in Japan alone have deployed AI-powered cameras and security devices in their stores.
Tanaka added:
“We’re still just discovering all the market potential. We want to keep expanding the scope of the company.”
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