Walmart will unveil an all-new experimental driverless grocery delivery service.
The test program has already launched in Miami, Washington D.C., and Austin. Shoppers can place online orders and have their goods delivered by the Ford Escape hybrids that contain Argo AI technology, which will allow the cars to schedule drop-offs, route orders, and drive themselves to the customer. The initiative initially kicked off in 2018.
“We’re excited to expand our autonomous delivery efforts in three new markets alongside Argo and Ford,” stated Tom Ward, Walmart SVP of customer product.
This new rollout is a part of the company’s growing interest in curbside service, which has been largely demanded since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The driverless drop-off limits interactions between humans in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 as the delta variant continues to devastate the United States.
Walmart has also partnered with a driverless vehicle startup company, Cruise, for a separate delivery program in the Scottsdale, Arizona area. The company has teamed up with smaller autonomous vehicle startups, including Nuro, Udelv, Gatik, and Waymo, to continue expanding their innovative deliveries.
It is unclear if customers will be able to choose between driverless vehicles or a human carrier.
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