The value proposition for Serve Robotics -- a spinoff of Uber's 2020 food delivery acquisition Postmates that created a fleet of zero-emission robots -- is simple: with slim restaurant margins, a labour crunch and climate change worries 'why move a two-pound burrito in a two-ton car?' But the company faces several roadblocks the path to ubiquity.
When customers in downtown Vancouver placed orders with Pizza Hut in September, many of the pies landed on their doorsteps without a courier in sight.
Delivery robots have been banned from some major cities like Toronto, which argued they are a hazard for people with low mobility or vision, as well as seniors and children. Cyclists already gripe about e-scooters in bike lanes and don't want robots there either. He's tried to quiet concerns by ensuring his robots chime and flash their lights to alert people they are around. They are equipped with automatic crash prevention, vehicle collision avoidance and emergency braking.
Knowing how much opposition new ideas can face, Serve is careful to engage with governments and authorities before launching in a city, even if it has no legislation allowing or banning robots. Manish Dhankher, Pizza Hut Canada's chief customer officer, agrees no pizza delivery is worth risking somebody's safety, but said his company only partnered with Serve once the robots had made thousands of injury-free trips.
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