Alipay Introduces ‘Smile to Pay’ Facial Recognition System at KFC in China

Alipay, a China-based online payment platform by Alibaba Group, has come up with an innovative digital payment system in China. The technology allows customers to make payment by merely flashing a smile that authenticates customers’ identity for the online transaction. Introduced as a beta version in 2015 by Alibaba’s founder Jack Ma, the service has now been launched by the company’s Ant Financial Affiliate in Hangzhou headquarter, where the technology is being trialed with KFC. It makes use of Face++ functionality from Chinese startup Megvii.

Alipay ‘Smile to Pay’ Facial Recognition Technology Trial at KFC in China

(Image Courtesy: The Verge)

The video released by Ant Financial demonstrates as to how this online payment technology works. It doesn’t need a smartphone to complete the transaction, provided that the customer is a user of the Alipay app and has enabled facial recognition. There is a 3D camera located at the point-of-sale that scans the customers’ face to verify their identity. Customers can also avail the option of mobile verification for enhanced security.

Here’s the video demonstrating the payment method:

Video Courtesy: Alizila

In the video demonstrating the payment method, it shows a young lady who uses a variety of wigs and makeup. Each time, the machine accurately recognized her face without any error or fault. The KFC shop offering this payment method is a healthier version of the chain called K Pro.

With this innovative payment technique, Alibaba envisions the future of commerce integrating elements from both online and offline retail. The company has already launched a cash-less store and is operating 10 neighborhood stores in Shanghai that use a mobile app to optimize the customer experience.