A mobile, fully autonomous supermarket has opened its doors in Shanghai, one of China’s largest cities. The pilot is called Wheelys Moby Mart, open 24 hours a day and said to be easily deployable.
Self-driving
The store has several products for direct consumption, like milk, ready-made meals and medicine. Customers simply walk into the store, grab what they want and exit the store. They scan the items with their smartphone and the costs are deducted from their bank account, which is linked to the app. Other items can be ordered beforehand and picked up at the supermarket.
The mobile supermarket is also environmentally friendly, as it has its own set of solar panels. It also filters the air, which should result in a lower level of air pollution.
Wheelys Moby Mart was developed by Swedish start-up Wheelys, in collaboration with the Chinese Hefei University of Technology. They want to create a self-driving version that can come to the customer. One Wheelys Moby Mart should cost about 100,000 dollar (90,000 euro), with several models planned for 2018.
