Hold Serve Inc., doing business as Serve, has integrated facial recognition technology into its platform to make its delivery system more secure for users and retailers.
The decision to utilize facial recognition technology was motivated by Pasadena-based Serve’s growing pharmaceutical delivery business. The Food and Drug Administration will require stricter identity authorization for delivered pharmaceutical drugs by 2020, and Serve wants to be ahead of the game, Chief Technology officer Roman Tsarovsky told the Business Journal.
“The delivery providers need to have confidence that the package they’re delivering is (given) to the person that’s accepting it,” Tsarovsky said.
Serve operates a platform that connects retailers and delivery couriers with each other to deliver goods to customers. A retailer will publish an order fulfillment request on the application. Drivers bid to accept the order and deliver the product. Every digital interaction between customer, retailer and driver is noted on a blockchain ledger, which allows all parties to track supply chains, deliveries and orders, according to the company.
Retailers using Serve include franchises like Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop Inc., based in Nevada, and Pieology Pizzeria, based in Rancho San Margarita, Tsarovsky said. The company plans to launch a new user interface in the next two or three months that will enable and consolidate multiple orders.
Tsarovsky said facial recognition is available for all Serve deliveries, but that it is primarily be used for pharmaceutical and liquor deliveries. Users opt-in to upload a photo of their face and an algorithm analyzes their unique features to ensure the user is who they say they are.
Serve takes a percentage of each transaction. Tsarovsky said a “6 (percent) to 7 percent” range is the average. The company was founded in January 2018 and has sought no outside funding yet. “We are self-sustaining and growing now, but if the right investor comes along, we would consider a fundraise,” Tsarovsky said.
Tech reporter Samson Amore can be reached at [email protected] or (323) 556-8335. Follow him on Twitter @samsonamore.
