Report So called “self-checkout” machines have become one of the most ubiquitous, and one of the most fraught, forms of new technology in grocery stores, pharmacies, and retail stores generally. The journey of self-checkout technology began on an optimistic note. When the first machines were introduced at Kroger stores in Atlanta in 1986, they were celebrated as a “revolution in the supermarket,” enthusiastically welcomed for its potential to reduce labor costs and shorten customer wait times (Puzo 1987). The adoption of self-checkouts skyrocketed during the Covid-19 pandemic, driven by public health concerns, and they remained a common fixture as the...