John Lewis is using AI to scan shoppers’ faces to check they are old enough to buy KNIVES [Video]

11:21 EST 21 Jan 2025, updated 11:58 EST 21 Jan 2025

John Lewis has become the first online retailer to use AI to check whether shoppers are old enough to buy knives.

Using a technology called facial age estimation, the online store can check whether someone is over 18 without needing to see their ID.

When someone wants to buy a knife, the shopper must give permission for the website to take a photo of their face which is then scanned by AI.

This has allowed John Lewis to start selling knives online for the first time since removing them from the store in 2009.

The technology has been provided by Yoti, which already provides age verification for social media and pornography sites.

According to Yoti, the software has been developed by training an AI on a database containing millions of photos of faces.

The company also claims that the software is better than human judgement and incorporates independently tested ‘anti-spoofing …