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A24 TECHNOLOGY
Saturday 8 June 2019
Stranger in the kitchen: Walmart to deliver inside homes

By ANNE D'INNOCENZIO tomer's home. That allows
Associated Press shoppers to control access
NEW YORK (AP) — How into their home and give
much do you trust a strang- them the ability to watch
er with your fridge? the delivery remotely.
Walmart is now offering to Walmart said that the work-
have one of its employees ers will go through an ex-
deliver fresh groceries and tensive training program
put them in your refrigera- to prepare them for things
tor when you're not home. like how to select the fresh-
The nation's largest grocer est groceries and how best
said that it will be offering to organize the refrigerator.
the service this fall for more Workers need to be with
than one million customers the company for at least
in three cities: Pittsburgh, one year. Walmart de-
Kansas City, Missouri, and clined to give specifics on
Vero Beach, Florida. Later the technology. It said that
this year, the service, called ahead of the launch it will
InHome Delivery, will also share the fee details for the
accept returns for items delivery service, which in
purchased on Walmart. In this Nov. 9, 2018, file photo, a box of merchandise is unloaded from a truck and sent along a addition to fresh food will
com. conveyor belt at a Walmart Supercenter in Houston. include grocery essentials
The new service, an- Associated Press such as canned pears and
nounced Friday ahead of peanut butter.
Walmart's annual share- leader Amazon.com to told the crowd of Walmart home accessories. That test The last mile from a trans-
holders' meeting in Fayette- bring packages faster and workers and shareholders has since been stopped. portation hub to someone's
ville, Arkansas, is part of the faster to customers' homes. on Friday at the University With Walmart's new service, home has been the key lo-
company's drive to expand Amazon offers a similar ser- of Arkansas' Bud Walton customers place a grocery gistical hurdle for delivery
its shopping options that in- vice in certain cities, drop- arena. delivery order online and services.
clude curbside pickup and ping off packages inside Two years ago, Walmart then select InHome Deliv- "Now, we can serve cus-
online grocery delivery and homes, garages or car tested a similar service in ery and a delivery day at tomers not in just the last
cater to time-starved shop- trunks. But its service does the Silicon Valley area but checkout. mile, but in the last 15 feet,"
pers. not deliver groceries. teamed up with delivery Walmart workers will use wrote Marc Lore, CEO
And it comes as the world's "We will learn and then we startup Deliv and worked smart entry technology and of Walmart's U.S. e-com-
largest retailer is locked in will scale from there," Doug with August Home, makers a proprietary wearable merce division, in a corpo-
an arms race with online McMillon, Walmart CEO of smart locks and smart camera to access the cus- rate blog post.q

Facebook stops Huawei from pre-installing apps on phones

By KELVIN CHAN the company's products for
Associated Press cyberespionage, though
LONDON (AP) — Facebook they haven't presented evi-
said Friday it has stopped dence of intentional spy-
letting its apps come pre- ing.
installed on smartphones "We are reviewing the
sold by Huawei in order Commerce Department's
to comply with U.S. restric- final rule and the more re-
tions, a move that deals a cently issued temporary
fresh blow to the Chinese general license and tak-
tech giant. ing steps to ensure com-
The social network said it pliance," Facebook said,
has suspended providing referring to a 90-day grace
software for Huawei to put period allowing continued
on its devices while it re- support of existing Huawei
views recently introduced equipment.
U.S. sanctions. Huawei declined to com-
Owners of existing Huawei ment.
smartphones that already Google, which makes the
have Facebook apps can Android operating sys-
continue to use them and tem used by Huawei, has
download updates. In this Tuesday, May 21, 2019 file photo, a member of the media tries out new Huawei Honor 20 already said that while it
Facebook said people series of phones following their global launch in London. would continue to support
who have Huawei phones Associated Press existing Huawei phones,
or buy new ones will still be future devices won't come
able to download Face- ment last month effectively merce Ministry responded their global campaign to with its flagship apps and
book on their own. barred U.S. companies from this week by warning it blacklist Huawei, the world's services, including maps,
Facebook's move is the lat- selling their technology to would release its own list of No. 1 network equipment Gmail and search. Only
est fallout in the escalating Huawei and other Chinese "unreliable" foreign compa- provider and second-larg- basic services would be
U.S.-China tech feud. firms without government nies in the near future. est smartphone maker. available for future versions
The Commerce Depart- approval. China's Com- U.S. officials are pressing They say Beijing could use of Android.q