Starship Technologies has passed the major milestone of 50,000 commercial deliveries.
The company’s robots have made deliveries in over 100 cities around the world, operating commercially every day in local neighborhoods and university and corporate campuses across five different time zones.
In April 2018, the company began delivering groceries and items from a Co-op food store in Milton Keynes, UK, to residents’ front doors. Since then, Starship’s global fleet of robots has not only surpassed 50,000 commercial deliveries but has now traveled over 200,000 miles across the globe.
Using Starship’s delivery service means residents don’t have to worry about driving to the shop to pick up their groceries, which not only saves them time and provides convenience, but also reduces congestion and pollution. To date, Starship’s delivery service in Milton Keynes has eliminated tens of thousands of unnecessary car journeys. The most popular items ordered in the last year include milk, bread and chocolate.
The growth in popularity of Starship’s service has also seen the company announce a new partnership with a second Co-op store in Milton Keynes, adding to the delivery service also offered from a Tesco store in the town.
Lex Bayer, CEO of Starship Technologies, said, “Today is a significant milestone for Starship as we celebrate passing 50,000 deliveries with our autonomous robots. The popularity of our service continues, and we are delighted to be expanding to additional neighborhoods and university campuses across the world.
“It has been exciting to see the increase in ‘top up shopping’ by residents in Milton Keynes where they buy groceries on multiple occasions throughout the week now that they have the option of autonomous delivery.”
Chris Conway, head of digital and e-commerce, retail, at Co-op, said, “This is an exciting time for the Co-op, with innovations and new technologies driving a number of different home delivery schemes. It is all about ease, convenience and choice for today’s time-pressed shopper.
“The popularity of our work with Starship is clear to see in Milton Keynes, with children leaving messages and drawings with the robots, and expressions of thanks from members of the community.”
This news in the UK follows significant expansion for Starship in the USA, where last month the company brought its autonomous delivery services to Northern Arizona University, following a launch at George Mason University campus in Fairfax, Virginia, in January 2019.