Since ChatGPT took the world by storm last fall, people have been in a frenzy debating the impact artificial intelligence and other new automated technology will have on America's job market. The "robots are taking our jobs" narrative was further boosted by viral videos showing new, "fully automated" McDonald's and Taco Bell restaurants. The knee-jerk reaction to these videos is to say that robots are coming for our jobs, but while AI and other kinds of automation have progressed, that doesn't mean they're necessarily eliminating jobs. Instead, the new tech is simply changing how we work and what kinds of jobs exist. Automation technology has ushered in a fleet of secret workers behind screens, machines, and smiling robot faces.

Retail giant Shoprite on Wednesday revealed that it is testing an automated Checkers concept store with no cashiers, or till points." Checkers Rush is a "no queues, no checkout, no waiting" concept store, it said. "Using advanced AI camera technology to identify the products being taken off the shelves, Checkers Rush bills users' bank cards upon exit." The store is revealed in a promotional video for Shoprite X, the company's new digital innovation unit. The shop is available to staff at ShopriteX offices near the company's home office, above Checkers Hyper Brackenfell in Cape Town.

In February 2018 Alibaba Cloud launched Cloud and AI Solutions in Europe to meet changing needs in digital transformation. The company rolled out an array of products at the Mobile World Congress to meet the surging demand for powerful and reliable cloud computing services as well as advanced AI solutions among European enterprises to support them to capture opportunities in this digital transformation era. Today, the Alibaba Group has announced the launch of their new retail experience powered by Alibaba FashionAI. Strategically partnering up with GUESS on the FashionAI project, Alibaba has come up with a way for customers to experience personalised mix-and-match recommendations from Alibaba's FashionAI. Scheduled to be open to the public on the 5th- 7th July 2018, the concept store will house garments and accessories by GUESS.

Diners at a KFC store in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou will have a new way to pay for their meal. Customers will be able to use a'Smile to Pay' facial recognition system at the tech-heavy, health-focused concept store, part of a drive by Yum China to lure a younger generation of consumers. The multi-step process includes two seconds of facial scanning with a 3D camera and then a'live-ness detection algorithm' which guarantees a user's identity. Customers will be able to use a'Smile to Pay' facial recognition system at the tech-heavy, health-focused concept store, part of a drive by Yum China to lure a younger generation of consumers Customers will be able to use a'Smile to Pay' facial recognition system at the tech-heavy, health-focused concept store, part of a drive by Yum China Holdings to lure a younger generation of consumers. The multi-step process includes two seconds of facial scanning with a 3D camera and then a'live-ness detection algorithm' which guarantees a user's identity. This algorithm can detect features that only come from living beings - which blocks people from using photos.

Last week, Wal-Mart filed a patent for in-store service drones that could locate and deliver items to customers within the store. From the patent's description, the drones would be equipped with a number of sensors to be able to detect and grab the correct product and then drop it off at a designated landing area where consumers can grab the item. Just last fall, Wal-Mart also filed a patent for electronic self-driving shopping carts that can find the items on customers' shopping lists, and would also self-sort once a customer is finished with the cart, clearing aisles. Wal-Mart, which employs roughly 1.5 million people and is the 15th biggest public company in the world, makes about $482 billion in revenue a year. Adding drones to the mix could signal that Wal-Mart is looking to downsize its in-store employee number and replace them with robotic help.

A KFC restaurant in China is now using two robots to help take customers' orders. KFC said it enlisted the robots in its concept store in Shanghai to bring a fun and high-tech element to the dining experience. The store is still largely run and staffed by humans who prepare food and take orders. But customers also have the option of carrying on a conversation with one of the robots to place and pay for their order. The robots, developed by the Chinese tech company Baidu, specialize in understanding human speech.