Food delivery via robots – something that has been a dream for years, is already taking place in Tokyo!
Uber Eats is all set to start delivering food through robots to Tokyo, in its first ever global rollout.
Uber Eats To Deliver Food Through Robots; Pilot Project in Tokyo
The initiative is the brainchild of Mitsubishi Electric, robotics startup Cartken, along with Uber Eats.
Silicon Valley-based Cartken has created delivery robots called Model C that are outfitted with sophisticated sensors and artificial intelligence. The robots have a cargo capacity of up to 27 liters and are capable of navigating sidewalks and detecting obstacles.
As per reports, they can move up to 3.3 miles per hour at a walking pace. Additionally, with Cartken’s technology, robots can be remotely monitored and guided around obstacles.
Let’s take a look at how the robotic food delivery system will work.
Through the Uber Eats app, customers in Tokyo can order food and select autonomous robot delivery. After being picked up from the restaurant, the robot will go on its own to the customer’s location. Additionally, patrons have the option to have their meal dropped off right at the door.
Uber Eats Starts Delivering For First Time Outside of The US
In Tokyo, Mitsubishi Electric will be in charge of the delivery robots’ training and operations. Mitsubishi Electric’s Shoji Tanaka is hoping that this initiative will help alleviate the labor shortage in logistics in Japan.
After starting in Miami, the autonomous delivery program was later extended to Fairfax, Virginia. Uber Eats is deploying delivery robots for the first time outside of the US in Tokyo.
Tokyo, in the eyes of Cartken CEO Qingrong “Gary” Xiao, is a logical next step given Japan’s embrace of robotics.
Xiao is thrilled to be collaborating on deliveries in Tokyo with Mitsubishi Electric and Uber Eats. The participating restaurants and delivery neighborhoods’ details in Tokyo have not yet been made public.
By the end of March, the Tokyo expansion is expected to get underway.
The initiative’s goal is to give Tokyo locals excellent delivery experiences. As the launch date approaches, more details about the program should become available. Technology for food delivery has advanced significantly with the introduction of delivery robots.
