Gaston’s Market, a 24/7 convenience store in the Gaston House, utilizes artificial intelligence technology to enable a convenient, no-wait shopping experience for students — the first of its kind at the University. Students have responded positively to the self-checkout system but note lingering technical issues and express skepticism about expanding such an impersonal retail experience.
The self-checkout program, “Just Walk Out,” was developed by Amazon and first introduced to the public in 2018 at an Amazon Go store. In 2020, Amazon started offering the technology to third-party retailers, including the University, which opened Gaston’s Market utilizing this technology in August 2024. The program works by using AI-powered cameras and weight sensors to monitor which items customers select, allowing customers to scan their method of payment when they walk in. Customers are then automatically charged for whatever items they walk out with.
In a written statement to The Cavalier Daily, Deputy Spokesperson Bethanie Glover commented on the purpose of implementing the AI program. She highlighted the convenience of allowing students to shop at any time and without needing a physical employee to lend assistance.
“The main goal in selecting a 24/7 self-checkout option was to provide students, faculty and staff with convenient access to market offerings at any time of the day or night,” Glover said.
Second-year College student Ann Leslie Riley said that she had a positive experience at the Gaston’s Market after initially being skeptical of this new technology.
"At first, I thought it was super weird, like ‘1984,’ where they're watching you,” Riley said. “But as I used it more, I ended up really liking it, it removes the awkward interaction of checking out. It just makes things a lot quicker.”
Despite the convenience of this system, Glover mentioned a few technical issues which persist but made it clear that when issues do occur, they are handled promptly. For example, Glover said that a rare but recurring issue students have noted is that products may be detected as other items. This could result in a student getting under- or overcharged for their items, but Glover said the system is continuously monitored to address this issue.
Another issue with the system was discussed by first-year College student Michelle Lin. Lin said there was an instance where she never got charged for an item she walked out with and that another student most likely ended up paying.
“I'm pretty sure I just walked in behind someone, and it got charged to their account,” Lin said. “And whoever it is, I thank them a lot for treating me to those cookies. But unfortunately, I did not pay for them.”
While student feedback has been mostly positive according to Glover, several students said they would rather have a more personable interaction when shopping. This is the case for Lin as she stated that the Gaston market trades the personal aspect of in-person shopping with efficiency. According to Lin, sometimes this can be beneficial for shoppers in a rush, but for students with nothing but time at the end of their day, this sacrifice seems unnecessary.
First-year College student Izzy Mitchell also said that she preferred the personal touch of an employee to both check out and help with the shopping experience over the convenience of a walk-in and walk-out payment system.
“I would say I very much prefer the traditional experience,” Mitchell said. “I enjoy having people to ask questions, come up to you, [and] I like talking to people at the cash register.”
Despite Riley’s positive experience at the market, she also stated she would prefer the traditional experience as she would feel uncomfortable with the prospect of the self-checkout system expanding across Grounds. Riley said she would prefer if other stores maintained regular check-out services.
“If this becomes the norm for larger purchases, or infiltrating the traditional shopping experience, I would be uncomfortable with that,” Riley said “I think I'm okay with it now, because it's just one very small place on [Grounds]. But, other than that, I don't think it should replace the typical human interaction of a shopping experience.”
Second-year Commerce student Tejas Lakshminarayan also had some reservations about Gaston’s Market but supports the AI program due to the necessity of providing 24/7 service without having to hire full-time employees, and stated that the impact of technology on the service industry is inevitable as society progresses.
“I think that it's kind of like a necessary evil for these smaller stores, especially a space like Gaston’s market,” Lakshminarayan said. “I think that it's just kind of a natural progression of technology, and I think we should accept that and find new ways for service workers to be able to benefit communities.”
According to Glover, student feedback is important for U.Va. Dine to consider in seeing what initiatives will be useful to the student population going forward. Glover said the University will continue to explore using the service at other retail locations on Grounds.
“We look forward to exploring additional opportunities for self-checkout models at other locations on Ground,” Glover said.
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