GS25 launches new autonomous store in Seoul

GS Retail's subsidiary has partnered with Fainders.AI to unveil this new location, marking the second site developed by the tech company in collaboration with one of Korea's largest convenience store brands.

GS25 has opened a new autonomous convenience store in Seoul, South Korea. Powered by Fainders.AI's latest AI technology, the location opened last October and is the second project developed as part of the retailer’s partnership with the tech company.

"With dynamic changes in Korea, especially in demographics, we believe the expansion of autonomous stores in Korea is approaching fast," said Myungwon Ham, Founder and CEO at Fainders.AI.

The latest GS25 store is powered by proprietary deep learning algorithms, utilizing only 2D cameras and reducing load cell-based inference.

"This partnership with GS Retail confidently embodies our mission. We aim to restore the profitability of offline retail," adds Myungwon Ham.

South Korea is home to a sizable 56,000 convenience stores, but it faces challenges such as a steep increase in the minimum wage and a staff shortage. As such, the minimum wage has markedly doubled over the last 10 years.