Uber Eats customers in Jersey City can now receive deliveries from Avride’s autonomous sidewalk delivery robots. This launch is part of Uber’s growing collaboration with Avride and its expansion into autonomous vehicles.
Uber currently partners with several other companies, including Cartken, Coco, Nuro, Serve Robotics, and Waymo, to integrate autonomous vehicles into its platform in numerous cities across the country. Avride provides both delivery bots and self-driving cars for Uber’s platform.
Avride’s delivery bots have previously been deployed in Austin and Dallas, and self-driving cars are expected to launch in Dallas this year. Additionally, Avride has a partnership with Grubhub to bring robots to university campuses, beginning with 100 at Ohio State University.
Jersey City presents unique challenges due to its unpredictable weather conditions, but Avride’s bots are designed to operate in snow and moderate precipitation. They have a range of 31 miles on a single charge and an optimal delivery range of one to two miles.
The bots will initially serve a one-square-mile area of Jersey City, including the Waterfront, Historic Downtown, and Hamilton Park, with plans for future expansion. Customers can select between traditional courier delivery or Avride robot delivery through the Uber Eats app.
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi recently expressed optimism about the trillion-dollar potential of the autonomous vehicle industry in the US. However, he acknowledged the challenges of commercialization, including high costs, regulatory issues, seasonal fluctuations, and the need for exceptional safety standards.
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