Inokyo
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
Some sections are still being researched2 / 4
Sections to complete：02 · 05
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
Inokyo (rhymes with Tokyo) was an autonomous retail startup founded in 2018 by Tony Francis as part of Y Combinator's summer 2018 batch. It built cashierless checkout stores that used ceiling cameras and computer vision to track what shoppers grabbed from shelves; customers scanned a QR code on entry and were charged automatically on exit. Its prototype store opened on Mountain View's Castro Street selling snacks, drinks and bath products. The founder later moved on to lead the machine learning platform at Clubhouse and then founded Dream3D.
02 / FAILURE REASONS
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03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Company founded
Tony Francis founds Inokyo in Y Combinator's summer 2018 batch to build AI-checkout retail stores.
- Prototype store opens
Inokyo opens its prototype cashierless store on Mountain View's Castro Street, using cameras and QR-code entry to enable grab-and-go shopping.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN / AFTERMATH
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.