| Job on the shop floor | Carries orders from store to door, or hands them over at the store |
|---|---|
| Where it works | Sidewalks and campuses near the store; pickup points at the store |
| Moves product? | Moves packed orders, not shelf stock |
| Works around shoppers? | Yes, on public sidewalks at walking pace |
| Where it stands today | Commercial in some cities, including UK grocery deliveries since 2018 |
| Main limit | Small loads, short distances, and it does nothing inside the store |
What it does
- Sidewalk delivery robots drive packed grocery orders from the store to nearby homes at walking pace, and can be remote-controlled when autonomy fails.[9]
- Starship's robots carry up to about 9 kg, a basket rather than a weekly shop.[9]
- Automated pickup points hold packed orders and release them to the customer, so staff don't hand over each one.
Strengths
Limits
- Small orders over short distances only: a large weekly shop still goes by van.[9]
- Depends on local rules for robots on sidewalks, which vary by city and country.
- Someone still has to pick and pack the order inside the store.
Where it stands today
- Starship operates in the UK and US, among other countries, with commercial service since 2017.[9]
Examples
Starship Technologies
Sidewalk delivery robots for grocery retailers and delivery apps.[8][9]
Visit site →Ask before you buy
- Are sidewalk robots allowed where my customers live?
- What is the delivery radius and maximum order size?
- Who picks and packs the order before the robot leaves?
Other types
- Humanoid restocking, stock rotation and order picking
- Shelf-scanning robots
- Floor-cleaning and hazard-spotting robots
- In-store picking robots
- Fixed micro-fulfilment systems
Sources
Every numbered claim on this page links here. Open the source to check it.
- Autonomous robot delivery (Starship Technologies)Sidewalk delivery robots for groceries, hot food and industrial supplies; delivery counts on the page are the company's own.
- Starship Technologies (Wikipedia)Milton Keynes service with Co-op and Tesco from April 2018; robots travel at pedestrian speed (up to 6 km/h), carry up to about 9 kg and can be remote-controlled when autonomy fails.