Sberbank to Roll Out AI-Powered Payment Terminals at Moscow's TSUM Department Store
This fall, checkout counters at Moscow's Central Department Store (TSUM) will begin using Sber's new NEO payment terminals. Built-in artificial intelligence is designed to help shoppers complete purchases faster while giving retailers new tools to increase average order value.
There are no AI-powered payment terminals anywhere in the world, and Russia is set to become the first country to deploy them at scale. Within months, premium retail checkout points are expected to evolve from passive payment devices into intelligent systems that actively assist both customers and merchants.
AI Moves Into the Payment Layer
NEO is designed as a customer-friendly payment terminal that adapts to the person standing in front of it. The device automatically adjusts its display angle to match the user's height, while its Time-of-Flight (ToF) camera with 3D facial mapping delivers accurate biometric authentication under virtually any lighting conditions. That helps reduce transaction time to just a few seconds. A built-in processor with a dedicated neural processing unit (NPU) makes this possible by running AI models directly on the device. Biometric authentication, however, is only one payment option alongside bank cards, QR codes, and other consumer payment methods.
"Customers can also split purchases into installments using Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL), leave tips, view their SberSpasibo loyalty points balance, and redeem those points immediately at checkout," Sber said. BNPL has already become a mainstream feature in e-commerce, where it has been shown to increase average order value by 20% to 40%. For TSUM, that creates a direct opportunity to improve conversion rates.
A Focus on Biometrics
Once the technology has been proven in premium retail, Sber's smart terminals are likely to expand into sectors where customer authentication and high-value transactions matter most, including healthcare providers, five-star hotels, and airlines. Aeroflot, for example, is already installing NEO terminals at its flagship customer office.
Biometric services continue to gain traction across Russia. During the first quarter of 2026 alone, biometric payments processed through Sber reached 33.6 billion rubles (about $430 million). As neural network-enabled payment systems become more deeply integrated into retail infrastructure, they are laying the groundwork for new customer services and additional revenue streams, making businesses increasingly likely to adopt these technologies.
From Bank Cards to Facial Recognition
Sber was one of the first companies in Russia to roll out biometric payments. In 2023, it launched the Oplata ulybkoy (Pay with a Smile) service, initially for Sber customers only. After successful pilots with retailers Zenden and VkusVill, the company rapidly expanded the service. In 2024, following the launch of interoperable biometric acquiring between banks, the platform became available to customers of other financial institutions as well. Shoppers could simply smile at checkout in supermarkets, pharmacies, and restaurants to pay for goods and services. By the end of that year, more than one million payment terminals capable of recognizing customers by their faces were already in operation.
In 2025, Russians made purchases worth 154 billion rubles (about $2.0 billion) using biometric authentication. That figure is expected to grow further in 2026, supported by continued expansion and modernization of the country's payment infrastructure.
A New Customer Experience Architecture
By the end of 2026, Sber plans to deploy several thousand NEO terminals. Their introduction at TSUM can be viewed as a large-scale test of a fundamentally new customer interaction model for the digital economy. A single device authenticates the customer, processes the payment, and acts as a personalized shopping assistant that helps guide purchasing decisions.
In the near term, the technology is expected to remain concentrated in premium-service environments and high-traffic venues, where both transaction speed and higher average order value are business priorities. Over time, it is likely to expand into mass-market retail. Solutions like these could quickly become the new standard for Russia's payment infrastructure.
