5G networks offer unique operational advantages when used to connect transaction approval systems. 5G networks supporting POS applications operate with more performance and less latency than networks built on previous standards. 5G networks offer greater speeds compared to earlier generations of cellular networks, effectively combating latency. This also makes 5G ideally suited to support activities that extend the POS beyond traditional cash wraps. In addition to pop-ups and temporary store operations, these include omnichannel services such as curbside pickup, buy-online-pickup-in-store (BOPIS) and buy-online-return-instore (BORIS), and mobile or self-checkout. Some retailers have also established “grab-and-go” models where customers remove products from shelves and check out using a QR code, or by simply exiting the store. 5G provides the necessary bandwidth and latency for computer vision cameras and shelf sensors needed to make this possible. As AI becomes integrated into a wide range of retail business functions, many of those AI applications require low-latency response times. This development is leading to a demand for edge AI solutions that deploy pre-trained AI models, generative AI, and agentic AI to the network edge, outside the data center, for local processing. In addition to computer vision for “grab-and-go” checkout, this includes accelerated checkout processing through real-time image recognition of items, automatic detection and alerting of theft, and real-time tracking of inventory as it is purchased and leaves the store. 5G networks offer the low latency, high-performance capabilities required to support AI-supported POS terminals and other edge devices in the store. AI analytics can also be applied in real-time to measure store metrics such as traffic patterns, checkout waiting time, and sales volumes. In addition to helping ensure POS uptime and throughput, network slicing can also provide enhanced security by isolating the POS from the rest of the store’s wireless network