Retail giant Carrefour is making sure that shelves are never empty for those essential items on a shopping list with a first for the region currently trialled at it in Mall of the Emirates hypermarket.
The retail group becomes the first ever in the Middle East to employ a robot to "drive efficiency and customer satisfaction”.
Named Tally, the new staff member weighs 14kg and is 163cm tall. Tally’s main job is to scan the shelves three times a day, with each one taking up to 3 hours, using artificial intelligence to provide real-time insights on missing, misplaced, unmarked, and incorrectly priced items, and alert the Carrefour team to correct any issue.
Also, Tally is smart enough to sense and see things and ‘humans’, and can avoid hitting them as it roams freely around the store doing its job.
According to the statement issued by the Carrefour, it allows the rest of the staff to interact with customers and ensure that Carrefour is offering the best shopping experience.
Philippe Peguilhan, Country Manager of Carrefour UAE at Majid Al Futtaim Retail says, “We have already seen a 30% increase in accuracy when it comes to scanning items on the shelves, and we are very excited for what else is to come.”
On your next visit to Carrefour in Mall of the Emirates, if you spot Tally, you are free to say hello to it and take photos with the friendly new staff member. If you do, tag us @connectordubai and use the hashtag #CarrefourTallyRobot on your social media posts.