Amazon Discontinues Palm Recognition System, Deletes User Data

Amazon is discontinuing its Amazon One palm recognition ID system for stores later this year, the company said in messages to users Tuesday night. The technology, which allowed customers to pay by scanning their palm at checkout, will be shut down on June 3, with all user data automatically deleted.

Amazon One was launched in 2020 as a contactless payment solution, initially rolling out at Amazon Go stores and later expanding to other retail locations. The system worked by scanning the unique vein patterns in a user's palm, creating a biometric identifier that could be linked to payment methods.

The decision to discontinue Amazon One comes as the company pivots its physical retail strategy. Amazon recently announced plans to close all 57 Fresh and 15 Go locations in the US, focusing instead on Whole Foods. The company says Amazon One technology will continue to be used for healthcare check-ins, suggesting the underlying biometric scanning capability still has value in specific use cases.

For the millions of users who enrolled in Amazon One, the company has assured that all biometric data will be permanently deleted on June 3. This automatic deletion addresses privacy concerns that have followed the technology since its launch, when critics questioned the wisdom of storing sensitive biometric information with a retail giant.

The shutdown of Amazon One represents a rare retreat for Amazon in the biometric technology space. While the company maintains other biometric systems like facial recognition through Rekognition (primarily for enterprise and government customers), the consumer-facing palm scanning experiment appears to have run its course.

Industry analysts suggest several factors may have contributed to the decision, including limited consumer adoption, privacy concerns, and the company's broader retail consolidation efforts. The technology never achieved widespread adoption beyond Amazon's own store network, and the company faced ongoing questions about data security and the long-term implications of storing biometric identifiers.

For affected users, Amazon recommends removing any linked payment methods from their Amazon One accounts before the June 3 shutdown. The company has not announced plans to bring back the technology in any form, though the continued use in healthcare settings indicates the underlying technology may find niche applications.

The discontinuation of Amazon One marks the end of one of the more ambitious biometric payment experiments in retail, highlighting the challenges of introducing new authentication methods to mainstream consumers despite the technology's potential convenience benefits.