The future of refueling goes likes this: drive in, tap your car’s infotainment screen, and drive right off.
The news: Banma, a joint venture between Alibaba and Chinese automaker SAIC that makes internet-connected cars, is opening a smart gas station this year in Beijing.
How it works: When a Banma car enters the gas station, geo-fencing systems detect where it is and trigger an app on the car’s touch screen. That lets drivers select fuel, pay via Alipay, and order things from the convenience store. Humans fuel the car and bring the goods. Then the driver just … goes.
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