"The Decline of Self-Checkouts in Retail: Understanding the Trend"

Major retailers, including Walmart and Target, are quietly removing self-checkout lanes due to increasing retail crime, particularly in California. The rise in theft, including "flash mob-style" attacks, has led to a reported 16% increase in retail theft in Los Angeles and rising shoplifting incidents in the Bay Area. Retailers are facing significant losses, with the National Retail Federation reporting $112 billion in losses in 2022. Some companies, like Kroger, are turning to artificial intelligence to combat theft at self-checkouts, signaling a potential evolution in self-checkout technology.