Coming to store shelves: cameras that guess your age and sex

NEW YORK – If you’re eyeing a can of soda in the supermarket cooler, a camera could be watching you.

But it’s not there to see if you’re stealing. These cameras want to get to know you and what you’re buying.

It’s a new technology being trotted out to retailers, where cameras try to guess your age, gender or mood as you walk by. The intent is to use the information to show you targeted real-time ads on in-store video screens.

Companies are pitching retailers to bring the technology into their physical stores to better compete with online rivals. Kroger and Walgreens are testing the cameras in a handful of stores.

But it’s also raising privacy concerns and shoppers may not even realize they are being watched.