We'd never have guessed that vending machines were ripe for innovation, but apparently there are plenty of high-tech ways to get your snacks. We saw a 65-inch transparent display handling the task last week, and now Kraft and Intel are showing off a vending machine in Chicago that screens your age before dispensing Jell-O Temptations samples. The machine uses a special camera and Intel-designed software to determine your age, and if it spots a child it refuses to hand out the tasty treat. Sure, it's little more than a marketing stunt, and we're curious to know how the machine actually works (what's the age cutoff? And what would it do with Justin Bieber and Zac Efron?), but it's a pretty cool trick, and if it works, age-recognition could actually have some interesting (and more practical) implications.
Kraft and Intel make age-checking vending machine that doesn’t serve children
Kraft and Intel built a vending machine that dispenses samples of Jell-O’s Temptations desserts, and it won’t serve to children.
Kraft and Intel built a vending machine that dispenses samples of Jell-O’s Temptations desserts, and it won’t serve to children.
is editor-at-large and Vergecast co-host with over a decade of experience covering consumer tech. Previously, at Protocol, The Wall Street Journal, and Wired.
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