Today in Food Commerce: Supermarkets Add Biometric Payment Capabilities; Ultrafast Grocer Cuts 300 Jobs

Today in food commerce, biometric payments options expand to more grocers, while Gorillas plans to lay off 300 employees. Plus, Walmart aims to complete 1 million drone deliveries by the year’s end, and a restaurant owner discusses with PYMNTS how artificial intelligence (AI) is revitalizing the brand’s phone ordering business.

Biometric Grocery Payment Options Expand as Shoppers Seek Frictionless Checkout

As grocery shoppers who are used to the speed and convenience of online shopping grow frustrated with the time-intensive process of traditional checkout, businesses are finding new ways to remove friction from the payment process. Last week, Mastercard announced the addition of biometric payment options, and Amazon brought its pay-by-palm capabilities to new Whole Foods Market locations.

German Delivery Service Gorillas Cuts 300 Jobs

German grocery delivery app Gorillas will lay off 300 workers — a move that halves its administrative staff — as the company changes its focus from expansion to becoming profitable, CEO Kagan Sumer said, adding the company has tripled in size since October when it raised $921 million, but has not been profitable.

Walmart ups Drone Delivery Comp With Amazon, Expands Program to 6 States

Walmart announced that it is expanding its unmanned aerial delivery service with partner DroneUp to six states, with plans to complete 1 million drone deliveries by the end of the year. In outlining the new initiative, the company said the service area will include 4 million households and tens of thousands of eligible items.

Voice Ordering AI Enables Restaurants to Meet Demand

Victor Matchie, owner of Aloha, Oregon-based sandwich chain Monkey’s Subs, spoke with PYMNTS about how the company’s conversational AI voice assistant, from speech recognition company SoundHound, enables the restaurant to meet demand without the bottlenecks that can otherwise result from call-in orders at peak times.

Zomato CEO: ‘The Jury Is Still out’ on Super Apps in India

On a call with analysts discussing Zomato’s fourth-quarter 2022 financial results, Deepinder Goyal, the company’s co-founder and CEO, expressed skepticism of the viability of the super app model in India.