Mobility technology company Magna has agreed to manufacture a fleet of autonomous delivery robots for robot company Cartken, to meet the growing demand for last-mile delivery.
Cartken’s fully autonomous delivery robots can operate outdoors and indoors and are equipped with a remote monitoring and teleoperation system that enables an instantaneous human override if necessary, helping to ensure service levels are high. The Cartken autonomous delivery robots are fitted with multiple cameras and respond to situations in real time using a combination of machine learning and navigation algorithms based on simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM). Currently, Cartken’s autonomous delivery robot fleet is in commercial operation and has been deployed for various autonomous delivery use cases in malls, hotels, universities, retail, back-of-house and warehouses.
Manufacturing of Cartken’s Model C has begun in a Magna facility in Michigan. Production capacity is expected to ramp up over the remainder of 2022. As the collaboration expands, the two companies plan to include additional autonomous delivery models based on the same platform for different use applications and robot-as-a-service business models. Cartken has forecasted that thousands of autonomous delivery robots will be produced during the term of the agreement.
Christian Bersch, co-founder and CEO of Cartken, said, “We seek strategic partners that can accelerate the trajectory of Cartken’s growth. This partnership is a significant step toward scaling our business and getting more Model Cs into the world. We’re honored that Magna, as a global leader with deep systems knowledge and manufacturing excellence, recognized the potential of our robots and the quality of our technology. We’re inspired by Magna’s push into new spaces and are excited to move forward together in our effort to scale distribution.”
Matteo Del Sorbo, executive vice president at Magna International and global lead for Magna New Mobility, said, “We continue to identify opportunities in the new mobility ecosystem where we use our capabilities to unlock new growth areas and new business models. This collaboration with Cartken is a great example of that approach. Our ability to design, engineer and manufacture complete vehicles makes Magna an ideal partner for companies looking to solve last-mile delivery challenges with sustainable, autonomous and cost-effective solutions.”