Microsoft is taking on Amazon in checkout-free retail stores

The software giant is working on technology that would eliminate checkout lines and cashiers from stores, Reuters reports. Microsoft has begun showing their system, which tracks what customers put in their carts, to retailers around the world, according to multiple sources. The company has also reportedly held talks with Walmart about using the technology.

The company is currently testing many forms of its checkout-free systems, two of which involve cameras either mounted on store shelves or mounted on shopping carts themselves, so the checkout-free system can see what items a customer places in their cart. Such a system would mean that traditional retailers would have the technology to compete against Amazon Go stores, which allow customers to shop for items and simply carry them out of the store without needing to go through a checkout line. The items the customers take are then charged to their Amazon account.