A New York Times article lauding the introduction of a new form of automated corner shop vending machine. The first of these behemoths is an 18 foot long machine – dubbed Shop 2000 – in Washington that dispenses everything from razor blades to eggs and nappies (diapers y’all).

Personally I think it’s doomed to failure. It only holds 200 items (as opposed to 2000+ held by most conventional ‘convenience’ stores) which is too few really. And besides, I really like having a chat with the folks behind the desk of my local corner shop.