Amazon Is Introducing Its Palm Scan Payment Tech To All Whole Foods Locations

Checking out your organic groceries from Whole Foods has gotten even easier than tapping your credit card. Soon, you will be able to complete your purchase with a wave of your hand.

Amazon, the tech and retail giant and the parent company of the upscale grocery chain is planning to roll out its new biometrics-driven payment system to all Whole Foods locations. Called Amazon One, it has been in development for some time, first making its debut in 2020 at the Amazon Go cashless convenience stores noted for having no cashier on staff. The company began to add the payment system to Whole Foods locations in 2021. At least 200 Whole Foods stores already have the technology installed, and the company expects to have it rolled out to all 500-plus locations by the end of the year.

In addition to Amazon-owned businesses, Amazon One has been used in other locations. The system is used by Panera Bread to track customer information, and it is used in Coors Field to verify customers' ages before purchasing alcoholic products. Airport retailers also use the system to facilitate speedy purchases.

If you are interested in using your palm to check out at Whole Foods, you will need to create an Amazon One profile, add your mobile phone number, and link it to a credit or debit card. If you are an Amazon Prime member, you can link your Amazon account to your Amazon One profile to take advantage of extra discounts exclusive to Prime members. To finish the sign-up process, simply wave your palm over the Amazon One scanner at your local Whole Foods store.

Amazon touts security as one of the benefits of this payment system. Since it relies on your palm scan for verification and payment, it cannot be replicated or impersonated. The palm scans are stored securely in the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud, and Amazon pledges that it will not sell your information to marketers, third-party organizations, and governments unless legally compelled to do so by binding order.