On Tuesday, Walmart and its subsidiary Sam’s Club filed a lawsuit in federal court in Florida against BJ’s Wholesale. It claimed that the rival retailer copied a self-checkout feature. The feature is reportedly almost the same as the one featured on Sam’s Club mobile app., which is called Scan & Go.

Walmart, the world’s largest retailer has been in the forefront of technology. The big box retailer claims that it spent several years to develop this feature that lets customers ring up purchases from Sam’s Club on their smartphones. It can be used as they walk through the store. They need not stand in a checkout line.

Scan & Go is protected as the giant retailer had already applied for multiple patents for the self-checkout feature. Although it debuted in 2016, it became immensely popular during the COVID-19 pandemic as customers loved its convenience as they had to maintain social distancing. Its contactless use also gained approval from Sam’s Club customers.

The suit by the Arkansas based retailer noted that “innovations were simply taken without permission” by BJ’s when it debuted Express Pay, which was its contactless app, in late 2021. It also says that merely changing the colors and name of the feature from Scan & Go to ExpressPay indicated that the feature was an “apparent copy” of the feature developed by Walmart. The lawsuit says that BJ’s infringement on Walmart’s patent rights had caused “significant damages and irreparable harm” to Walmart.

Sam’s Club Scan & Go feature is offered as a benefit to Walmart+ subscribers. Although it did not mention the number of customers who have opted for Walmart+, the retailer said that its fourth quarter membership numbers were at a record high.

BJ’s did not respond when asked for comment by multiple outlets, although it is confirmed that it has not filed any motions, to date. Walmart also has not responded but directed outlets to its complaint. The big box retailer has asked the court to award it damages as well as to stop BJ’s from infringing on its patents.

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Financial services company Robinhood Markets Inc. rolled out a new debit card that allows users to invest their spare change automatically. The Robinhood Cash Card, launched on Tuesday, will allow spare change investing, will be associated with a spending account separate from users’ brokerage accounts and will be valid for in-person, online, and ATM withdrawals.

The new card will take the place of Robinhood’s current Cash Management debit card, which was first announced in 2019. The card’s most notable new feature is the option for users to automatically invest in assets such as stocks and cryptocurrency when they spend money.

Robinhood will round up card transactions to the nearest dollar and use the extra money to purchase assets selected by the user. So, if you spend $10.55 on a burrito bowl with your Cash Card, Robinhood will round the payment up to $11 and apply it to your account, and use the remaining $0.45 to buy Ethereum or Dogecoin.

According to the company, which is known as a pioneer of commission-free trading, users of this feature will also receive a weekly bonus. Robinhood Money, the online brokerage’s new subsidiary, is offering the card.

Other consumer finance apps, such as Chime and Acorns Grow Inc, allow for spare change investing, which allows users to invest small amounts of money and is especially appealing to younger consumers.

Customers will also be able to receive paychecks up to two days in advance via direct deposit, a feature also provided by PayPal Holdings Ltd. The company also stated that these new features would be provided at no cost. There are no subscription fees, no account minimums, no overdraft fees, and no in-network ATM fees with this card.

The network Robinhood is using for the debit card is unknown, but its previous Cash Management card used Mastercard.

To encourage people to use this feature, Robinhood will give them an extra 10% to 100% of their weekly round-up money (up to $10 per week). Aparna Chennapragada, Robinhood’s chief product officer, has reportedly stated that the company preferred to update its debit card rather than launch a credit card due to changing spending habits, particularly among younger, Gen-Z consumers.

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In an announcement that brought cheer to New York City’s iconic Yellow Taxis, customers and more, Uber Technologies Inc. announced that it will feature these cabs in its popular app. This would help the taxi industry which has seen a slump as well as the ride hailing company, which is facing a shortage of drivers. An alliance will be formed with the taxi commission’s technology partners and Uber. The news also energized the market in New York as Uber shares rose by 5 percent after Thursday’s announcements.

The companies issued separate statements about the new alliance. The New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission operates with the help of technology partners–Creative Mobile Technology and Curb Mobility. Their apps Curb and Arro are used by most of the yellow taxis in the Big Apple. The apps will let customers book trips in taxis via the Uber app.

On Thursday, the announcements also noted that the new deal will start as a pilot phase in spring and become fully functional by summer.

Guy Peterson, Uber’s director of business development said that it was a win for both drivers and riders. Drivers need not have to worry about “finding a fare” at off peak times not did they have to wait for a street hail back to Manhattan when they dropped riders to the outer boroughs of NYC. He also noted that riders would also have great benefits as they could access thousands of the iconic taxis “in the Uber app.”

Riders would get taxis at the same price offered by an UberX for the same ride. The fare could be higher or lower that the metered fare, depending on surge. Taxi drivers will be allowed to see the fares before accepting a ride. Uber drivers do not have this facility, as of now.

Although this is a first of its kind alliance in the nation, Uber has formed alliances with different taxi companies in countries all over the world including in Europe with Spain, in Turkey, in Hong Kong and other countries. There are approximately 14,000 Yellow Taxis in New York City.