Automated Retail & Physical Technology

Automated retail is the practice of putting a complete, self-service transaction into a physical machine — selection, payment, dispensing, telemetry and remote management — and then keeping that machine running in environments it was never designed for. It sits at the intersection of hardware, software and operations, and it is where Teddy Sanchez has spent the bulk of his career. A kiosk is never just a box with a screen: it is a connected platform that has to survive weather, vandalism, network drops, coin jams and the long tail of edge cases that show up the moment you ship.

The work spans the full stack. On the hardware side: electronics, motors, payment readers, sensors and custom mechanical assemblies, plus the manufacturing and supply chain that turn a prototype into a fielded fleet. On the software side: embedded firmware, cloud connectivity, remote diagnostics, inventory and transaction data, and increasingly the AI layers that turn that data into predictive maintenance, demand forecasting and smarter routing. On the operations side: installation, field service, uptime and the unglamorous discipline of keeping hundreds of machines doing their job across the country.

The pattern repeats across every build: break the problem down, understand each layer, then make the whole system work together. That approach applies equally to experiential installations, connected hardware for brands, and community-facing platforms like Good Life THRIVE — and it is the throughline behind every case study on this site.