Palm scanning: Tencent sees a future where everyone gets by with just a swipe of the hand

Editor’s Note: Sign up for CNN’s Meanwhile in China newsletter, which explores what you need to know about the country’s rise and how it impacts the world. “We have confidence in this,” Guo, vice general manager of Tencent’s Weixin Pay Industry Application unit, told CNN in an exclusive interview when asked whether it could represent a new norm. The Seattle-based e-commerce giant launched its own palm scanning payment service in 2020, letting users connect their palm prints to credit cards to buy items at the company’s cashier-free stores. “We’re hoping that palm payments can save people the trouble of carrying physical items … so that our lives become more convenient.” For example, Tencent staff are using the system to enter corporate canteens for lunch, saving them the hassle of running back to their desks if they forget their security passes, according to Guo. “So we are thinking that perhaps in the near future, these physical will no longer be needed.” Kate Xue, a user of Tencent’s palm scanning service at a Supermonkey gym in Shenzhen, said she wasn’t too worried about the possibility that her data could fall into the wrong hands.