Starship Technologies begins delivery robot trials with logistics firms

Developer of self-driving delivery robots Starship Technologies will start testing its robots in partnership with large logistics companies in Britain, Germany, and Switzerland.
Starting July, autonomous delivery robots can be encountered on the pavements of UK, German and Swiss cities as part of a testing program, the company announced. A similar program will be announced for the United States shortly.
The robots will be tested by the largest European food delivery company, Just Eat, German parcel delivery company Hermes, German retailer Metro Group, and London food delivery startup Pronto.
“Launching partnerships with major companies, we enter the next phase of our development. While Starship has been testing the robots in 12 countries in the last nine months, we will now develop know-how on running real robotic delivery services,” said Ahti Heinla, co-founder and CEO of Starship Technologies.
The test programs will run in London, Düsseldorf, Bern, and one more German city for starters before moving on to several other European and American cities. Starship Technologies will also continue testing its robots in Tallinn, where its R&D facilities are located.
The knee-high robots can deliver loads of up to 10 kilograms. The locked cargo bay can only be opened by the recipient. The robots have already driven more than 8,000 kilometers in street trials and encountered over 400,000 people without a single accident.
Editor: Editor: Dario Cavegn
Source: BNS