Top news from the self-service market

Key self-service market news: how technology is changing customer service

The self-service solutions market continues to grow rapidly. Companies from different industries are implementing automated devices to speed up service, reduce staff workload and make the customer experience more convenient.

Recent cases show one clear trend: businesses are increasingly using AI, self-service kiosks, parcel lockers and smart devices not as experiments, but as practical tools for everyday operations.

AI-powered smart cabinets for retail

British retailer Waitrose is testing AI-powered smart cabinets for products with a high risk of theft.

The AI system analyzes customer actions, detects suspicious behavior and helps protect expensive items. For retail, this provides several benefits:

• reduced losses;
• better control of premium-segment products;
• a safer shopping process;
• additional analytics on customer behavior.

These solutions show that retail automation is moving beyond self-checkout systems and is now being used more often for security and product management.

Parcel lockers automate public service centers

In some regions of Russia, public service centers continue to expand the use of automated document pickup through parcel lockers.

Residents can now receive ready documents faster and without waiting for an employee. This is especially important for public services, where speed, transparency and convenience matter.

Document parcel lockers help to:

• reduce queues;
• lower the workload on staff;
• speed up document pickup;
• make public services more convenient for users.

AI kiosks in healthcare

In China, AI kiosks for initial diagnostics and medicine dispensing are developing actively. The system analyzes symptoms, generates recommendations and can immediately dispense the required medicine.

This technology helps automate basic healthcare processes:

• performing initial diagnostics;
• generating recommendations;
• assisting with medicine selection;
• reducing the workload on medical staff.

Of course, such solutions do not fully replace doctors, but they can become a useful tool for first-contact assistance and quick support.

Self-service pizzerias in food tech

Little Caesars has launched a new pizzeria format in Michigan with a high level of process automation.

The format includes:

• automated order placement;
• self-service product pickup;
• faster customer service.

For the food tech industry, this is an important signal: self-service in food service is becoming more common. Customers receive their orders faster, while businesses can manage customer flow more efficiently.

Self bag drop at airports

Israir has introduced self bag drop kiosks for domestic flights at Ben Gurion Airport.

The new system helps passengers complete check-in faster and makes the departure process more convenient. This is especially important at busy airports, where every minute affects the overall customer experience.

Self bag drop helps to:

• speed up check-in;
• reduce queues at registration counters;
• lower the workload on staff;
• make baggage drop-off more independent and clear for passengers.

Why the self-service market is growing

All these news stories show one common trend: service automation is becoming part of everyday infrastructure. Retail, healthcare, public services, airports and food tech use self-service solutions for different tasks, but the goal is the same — to make processes faster, more convenient and more efficient.

For businesses, these technologies help optimize operations, reduce operating costs and improve service quality. For customers, they mean less waiting, more control and easier access to the required service.

Self-service technologies are already changing familiar service scenarios. And in the future, there will be even more such solutions — from parcel lockers and kiosks to AI systems and next-generation smart devices.