A new vending machine that sells ammunition is turning heads inside an Alabama supermarket, offering gun owners a novel way to purchase ammo without having to interact with a store clerk.
Purchasing ammo through the vending machine appears to have more safeguards than the US voting system; customers select their ammo type and scan their identification, then a facial recognition camera uses AI to verify their identity.
American Rounds COO Lawrence Songer told WVTM public reaction to the machine, installed inside the Fresh Value grocery store in Pell City in November 2023, has been mostly positive.
“The reviews and interactions we’ve had with customers think it’s a good idea. They think it’s convenient. They like the fact that it’s here,” Songer said, adding, “Sales have been steady and strong at all the locations we’ve launched, so far. And, hopefully it just continues that trend.”
However, one Fresh Value shopper expressed he thought it made ammunition too accessible.
“If you’re a responsible person, you don’t mind walking up to a counter and saying, ‘Hey, I need some .380 ammo or I need some 14 ammo,’ and if it takes you an extra second or two, so be it. You’re dealing with something that can take someone’s life. So I think that’s not too much of a price to ask,” the customer stated.
Songer contends the machine safely stores and secures the ammo so retail employees “don’t have the worry of putting something out on their store shelves that someone could steal.”
The company has so far put machines in 6 locations throughout Alabama and Oklahoma.