A DoorDash robot has been unveiled by the delivery company, named Dot. Looking vaguely like an extremely red stroller, the company says it’s the first commercial autonomous delivery robot to be able to use any mix of roads, sidewalks, and bike lanes …
DoorDash says it’s intended to replace the use of cars for more local deliveries.
“You don’t always need a full-sized car to deliver a tube of toothpaste or pack of diapers. That’s the insight behind Dot,” said Stanley Tang, Co-Founder and Head of DoorDash Labs. “The breakthrough wasn’t just making it autonomous, but in making it reliable and efficient to serve the needs of local businesses and consumers. Dot is purpose-built for the millions of deliveries we facilitate every day. It is small enough to navigate doorways and driveways, fast enough to maintain food quality, and smart enough to optimize the best routes for delivery.”
Dot can adapt its speed to switch between roads, sidewalks, and bicycle lanes with a maximum speed of 20 miles per hour. It will initially launch in two cities in Arizona, Tampa and Mesa, before a wider rollout.
The company claims that it won’t replace the work of Dashers, but will rather help them get higher-value jobs.
For Dashers, they will continue to complete the vast majority of our millions of daily deliveries. At the same time, autonomous technology will increasingly allow Dashers to focus more on the high-value orders that require human judgment and care.
DoorDash believes it will help grow the market for local delivery and thus create more opportunities.
You can see Dot in action in the video below.
Highlighted accessories
Photo: DoorDash