How Daemon's cross-continental team builds innovative JWO solutions

Let’s delve into an exciting retail technology: Amazon Just Walk Out (JWO). At Daemon, our approach to JWO combines technical expertise with a client-focused mindset, centered on solving complex problems efficiently. 

We spoke to two senior Daemonites, Head of Software Engineering, Henry Ayres and Managing Consultant, Vutlhari Rikhotso (VT), to understand how Daemon is implementing this technology in some of the most challenging retail and stadium environments.

What’s all the fuss about JWO?

Just Walk Out (JWO) technology is transforming retail experiences by letting customers shop without traditional checkouts. Daemon is an official member of AWS Just Walk Out technology Certified Partner Network, and we’ve become Amazon’s go-to partner for complex implementations. From Australian sports stadiums to UK retail spaces, we’ve consistently delivered solutions that outperform standard approaches.

Read more about our innovations with JWO

Daemon doesn’t just implement innovation; we make it work reliably, efficiently, and cost-effectively. Our JWO system at Melbourne’s MCG stadium handles two of the busiest Food and Beverage outlets in the stadium, managing the surge of customers during the breaks in play and all for less than $1000USD a month.

We’re happy to bring a challenge

Henry recalls the first JWO build: “The perceived wisdom was that the best architectural pattern for the JWO connector would be Java-coded lambdas; we thought otherwise and thought a Fargate-backed ECS solution would be better.

We stuck to our guns: it has to be faster, always up, and never let customers wait.” VT adds, “What made us stand out is that we challenged assumptions and didn’t just accept how things were done.”

Connect with Henry Ayres on LinkedIn

Our ability to challenge the status quo from the start is a time saver, meaning we can prioritise architectural choices that deliver speed, reliability, and resilience. From understanding basket mechanics to controlling gate operations, it’s how we became the “source of truth” in large projects, and were able to ensure smooth, uninterrupted service during high-pressure moments like stadium concession surges. 

This hands-on, meticulous approach has earned Amazon’s trust and positioned us as leaders in cutting-edge retail technology. This willingness to question and refine recommendations has allowed Daemon to deliver resilient, high-performing solutions where others follow textbook methods. 

Technical excellence across continents

Another string to our bow is the global teamwork we bring to every project. Cross-continent collaboration gives Daemon a natural advantage. VT explains, “We get extra hours to focus on work before the UK day starts. By the time they begin, we’ve already made progress.” Cultural differences help, too. Combined with Daemon’s supportive work culture, this creates exceptional delivery capability and clear communication across teams.

Connect with Vutlhari Rikhotso on LinkedIn

Henry emphasizes that engineers don’t just code, they solve problems: “Something was going wrong with a new installation, and one of our guys in South Africa disappeared. He came back with the solution that no one else would have found.” VT adds, “Our engineers, like Martin and Arnaldo, are some of the most technically capable I’ve ever worked with, anywhere in the world.”

By challenging assumptions, leveraging global expertise, and prioritizing operational realities, Daemon delivers scalable, resilient JWO solutions that clients trust and rely on. That’s why Amazon keeps returning to us for their most demanding implementations.

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