While people are questioning the reliability of self-driving cars, another group of folks are working relentlessly to develop autonomous delivery vehicle. The most prominent would be Amazon with its rather audacious drone delivery system and then there’s Domino Pizza Australia more down-to-earth, land-going pizza delivery drone. As it turns out, retailers with the financial muscles to flex are not the only ones exploring human-less delivery. London-based Starship Technologies, a company started by Skype co-founders, is also in the game.
In fact, these guys have been researching and developing autonomous delivery robots since 2014 and the company’s very own self-driving delivery robots have been doing the rounds in some European and American cities since end of last year, racking up nearly 5,000 miles and serviced over 400,000 folks without any issue. Aesthetically, the robotic delivery vehicle looks pretty much like what you might expect: a cooler box-like contraption with multiple wheels. Kudos for the engineers for employing wheels, which should allow for more freedom of movement over more adverse terrains as opposed to a standard four wheeler.
Starship Technologies’ version of self-driving delivery robot can deliver groceries, food and other packages from retailers to customers within a 3 miles radius. Like Domino’s, human operators will monitor the robot as it autonomously make its way to the intended destination. As the robot deemed to have proven its worth, Starship Technologies is widening its testing this month to cities in the U.K, Germany and Switzerland, where the self-driving delivery robots will courier for companies like food delivery giant Just Eat, German parcel delivery company Hermes, retailer Metro Group, and London food delivery startup Pronto.co.uk. I guess a cooler-box robot on wheels is a baby step to a Fedex robot complete with limbs? You know what I am talking about, don’t you?
Images courtesy of Starship Technologies.
