Amazon reportedly working on a smart fridge that helps you shop
According to Business Insider, the smart fridge detects your groceries through computer vision and can order more food when you run low.
An Amazon smart fridge of the future might be able to do your grocery shopping for you. According to a report from Business Insider Tuesday, Amazon has been working on the technology to develop a smart fridge for years. With cameras and computer vision similar to those in the touchless Amazon Go stores, the fridge would be able to detect what groceries you have in stock, and order more when they're close to expiring or running low.
Business Insider notes that Amazon likely won't be making the fridge itself. Instead, the tech giant is in talks with known appliance manufacturers and would provide the cameras and tech needed to make the fridge smart.
The fridge is apparently code-named Project Pulse and it would likely partner with Amazon's Whole Foods and Amazon Fresh stores to order your groceries. The smart appliance will track what you buy over time to refine its recommendations. The ability to recommend recipes based on what you have in stock could also be in the works.
We've seen refrigerators like the Samsung Family Hub make use of computer vision. Samsung's fridge can now even access Alexa after a recent update. Some smart appliances can already order supplies through Amazon Dash. This new tech could make the process that much more seamless, though it supposedly won't be cheap at launch. Business Insider notes that it's aimed at upper-income households that already have an Amazon Prime subscription.
An Amazon spokesperson declined to comment.