Pizza Hut Asia trials order and pay using a robot called Pepper

Pepper
PIZZA THE ACTION: Robot Pepper can take orders and complete digital transactions

Customers at Pizza Hut locations in Asia will soon be able to place orders, receive offers and complete payments on a tablet held by Pepper, a humanoid robot developed by SoftBank Robotics. The transactions will be completed through MasterCard’s MasterPass digital wallet service.

“A consumer will be able to initiate an engagement by simply greeting Pepper and pairing the consumer’s MasterPass account by either tapping the Pepper icon within the wallet or by scanning a QR code on the tablet that the robot holds,” MasterCard says.

“After pairing with MasterPass, Pepper will be able to assist cardholders by providing personalised recommendations and offers, additional information on products and assistance in checking out and paying for items. Pepper will be able to initiate, approve and complete a transaction by connecting to MasterPass via a Wi-Fi connection and the entire transaction happens within the wallet.”

Opportunities

“Pizza Hut Asia will be piloting Pepper for order-taking and personalised engagement to enhance customer service in-store by end of 2016,” the payment network adds. “The Pepper application adds to ongoing MasterCard programs that bring payments to any consumer gadget, accessory or wearable.

“The integration with Pepper has the potential to open up opportunities in the world of retail such as personalised shopping and concierge services, in-aisle checkout and the ability to buy in-store but get the goods delivered at home. The same capability would also be applicable to other consumer engagement locations such as hotels, banks, airports and other customer service industries.”

A video gives an overview of how Pepper works in Pizza Hut Asia:

“Core to our digital transformation journey is the ability to make it easier for customers to engage, connect and transact with Pizza Hut,” says Vipul Chawla, managing director of Pizza Hut Asia. “With an order-and-payment-enabled Pepper, customers can now come to expect personalised ordering at our stores, reduced wait for carryout and have a fun, frictionless user experience.”

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