👀 Ones to watch: Undervalued stocks to buy before they report Q3 earningsSee Undervalued Stocks

Serve Robotics ties up with Alphabet's unit for drone deliveries, launching pilot in Texas

Published 10/01/2024, 06:05 AM
Updated 10/01/2024, 06:12 AM
© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: An Uber Eats delivery bag is seen on a bicycle in Brooklyn, New York City, U.S., May 9, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo
GOOGL
-
SHAK
-
UBER
-

(Reuters) - Serve Robotics, which delivers food for Uber (NYSE:UBER) Eats using sidewalk robots, said it would partner with Alphabet-owned Wing Aviation to use drones, extending the operational range to more than six miles.

The pilot, announced on Tuesday, would take place in Dallas, Texas, and mark Serve's entry into the market. The tie-up will have Serve's robots pick up food from restaurants and transfer it to Wing drones for aerial delivery.

The company's operations have so far focused on Los Angeles, where it delivers food and groceries for convenience retailer 7-Eleven and Shake Shack (NYSE:SHAK), in addition to Uber Eats.

Multi-modal delivery will expand Serve's reach, enabling 30-minute autonomous delivery citywide, Serve's CEO Ali Kashani said.

While drones were once touted to be the future of package and food delivery, their adoption has been limited by a lack of spaces for takeoff and landing in cities. Unlike them, sidewalk delivery robots are designed to navigate urban environments, making them a more practical solution.

"Through this pilot partnership, Wing hopes to reach more merchants in highly congested areas while supporting Serve as it works to expand its delivery radius," Wing CEO Adam Woodworth said.

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: An Uber Eats delivery bag is seen on a bicycle in Brooklyn, New York City, U.S., May 9, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo

Serve, spun off from Postmates in 2021 a year after its acquisition by Uber, said merchants would not have to make any changes to their workflow or facilities to accommodate robot-to-drone deliveries.

The Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) unit, which started as a project within incubator Google X, has completed more than 400,000 commercial deliveries across three continents, Woodworth added.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.