Tech Vendors Aim New Devices at a More Complex Point of Sale

Merchants managing a big load of stockkeeping units, or SKUs, look to embrace technology to help with that chore. At the same time, that demand offers opportunity for payments companies. Hence, Bodega AI, announced early Wednesday by the payments provider Payroc WorldAccess LLC. At the same time, a new mobile point-of-sale device has emerged, this one from PAX Technologies Inc., offering expanded memory for faster processing, according to PAX.

Bodega AI is so-called because it offers AI-based inventory management, Payroc says. a particular challenge for stores managing high product counts and at the same time looking to offer speedy checkouts. The target list includes convenience stores, liquor stores, smoke shops, delis, and pet-supply stores, according to Payroc, which has partnered with Dallas-based technology firm Bodega Ai to develop the namesake service.

At the same time, the new service promises to cut processing costs for merchants, offering dual pricing and surcharging capability.

“Bodega AI was built to solve a very real challenge for high-SKU retailers managing thousands of products and complex pricing without advanced payment tools,” said James Derby, senior executive vice president of merchant product at Tinley Park, Ill.-based Payroc, in a statement about the new product. Among the software’s features is the ability to “make data-driven pricing decisions at the point of sale,” Derby adds.

Payroc in recent months has pursued a dual strategy that looks to offer point-of-sale technology to small and mid-size businesses while also looking for opportunity among larger sellers faced with integration challenges. It found reinforcement in that dual mandate with its deal last year for the processor BlueSnap, which closed in October.

Now, with its introduction of Bodega AI, the company looks to harness AI at the point of sale while also offering fast checkouts.

PAX meanwhile looks to harness that demand among merchants for speedier checkouts, launching early Wednesday its A920Pro PCI 7 device, which offers what PAX says is an “upgraded” Android 14 operating system. “The A920Pro PCI 7 represents the next step in the evolution of mobile payments,” says Clint Jones, chief commercial officer at Jacksonville, Fla.-based PAX, in a statement.

The new device’s mobility fits it for a range of tasks, including pay-at-table, line-busting, and delivery, PAX says, adding it can support chip, contactless NFC, and mag stripe transactions. Information about pricing was not immediately available.