Tencent launches palm payments in Beijing, allowing metro passengers to pay with the wave of a hand

 The technology relies on recognition of both surface-level palm prints and the hand’s veins, according to Tencent. It was developed by the company’s YouTu artificial intelligence lab.

“In our aim to improve efficiency and greatly simplify user experience, we are making new technology more user-friendly for the elderly and accessible to people with disabilities,” the company said in the statement.

Tencent said it is gradually rolling out palm payments for use in other settings including offices, campuses, retail outlets and restaurants.

The new payment method drew heated discussions on social media, as many netizens have grown increasingly privacy-conscious in a country where biometric data theft is a common occurrence and facial recognition payments have been available for years.

“Is it really safe to collect biometric data?” asked one user on the microblogging platform Weibo in one of the more popular comments on the topic.

Tencent’s new palm-recognition service for WeChat Pay allows users to pay at designated metro turnstiles operating on Beijing’s airport express line by placing their hands over a scanner. Photo: Handout

Tencent’s new palm-recognition service for WeChat Pay allows users to pay at designated metro turnstiles operating on Beijing’s airport express line by placing their hands over a scanner. Photo: Handout

Chinese social media giant Tencent Holdings is allowing Beijing metro passengers to pay for rides using only their palms in a new service launched in China’s capital city through its WeChat Pay service, referred to as Weixin Pay domestically.

Starting from Sunday, users who enrol in the palm-recognition service can pay for rides on the Daxing Airport Express Line by holding their hands over a scanner at metro station turnstiles. Recognition of a unique palm print triggers an automatic payment through the user’s WeChat account.

To register, palm prints must be taken at a designated machine at a metro station. Passengers can then use their palms at turnstiles with a green circle, Tencent said in a statement on Monday.