Uber Eats and Cartken partner for Sidewalk Robot Deliveries

Uber Technologies, Inc. and Cartken, a leading robotics company, today announced a new partnership for food deliveries via automated robots in Miami, Florida. Uber Eats consumers in Miami will have the opportunity to have orders delivered by Cartken's self-driving robot.

Starting today, Uber and Cartken will begin operating with select merchants in the Dadeland area of Miami-Dade County with plans to expand in Miami-Dade and to additional cities in 2023. Cartken's AI-powered sidewalk delivery robots currently are used for neighborhood food and grocery delivery, campus meal delivery...

Grubhub and Kiwibot Partner for Robot Delivery on College Campuses

Grubhub, a leading food ordering and delivery marketplace, and Kiwibot, a leading last-mile robotic delivery company, announced today that they will provide robot delivery services on college campuses across the United States.

Robot delivery from Kiwibot and Grubhub will first be available at the University of North Dakota before rolling out to additional schools next semester. Kiwibot joins Grubhub's existing partners, including Cartken and Starship, on nearly a dozen campuses offering robot delivery.

"When it comes to the campus dining experience, we see robot delivery as a complementary offering..."

Refraction AI Tests Autonomous Delivery at Two Chick-fil-A® Restaurants in Austin, TX

Refraction AI, a last-mile, autonomous robot delivery company, announced today it has deployed a fleet of its self-driving vehicles to provide energy-efficient meal deliveries at two Chick-fil-A restaurants located in downtown Austin, Texas. Refraction's innovative approach to last-mile delivery makes the cost, safety and sustainability benefits of self-driving technology available today by serving the rapidly growing demand for goods delivery across multiple categories.

Refraction's Robot-as-a-Service platform combines self-driving technology, tele-operations and a delivery...

4 Major Trends in Food Carryout and Delivery

Many consumers have reported using more food carryout and delivery compared to pre-pandemic behavior. In 2021, U.S. food carryout and delivery sales reached $694 billion due in part to the impact of the pandemic, which helped drive the demand for convenient foods eaten at home, as detailed in Food Carryout and Delivery in the U.S., 2nd Edition by Packaged Facts. The report describes a variety of unique food delivery and carryout trends to watch, including those highlighted below.

1. Continued Elevated Use Of Food Carryout And Delivery
Food carryout and...

Motional and Uber Eats Launch Autonomous Deliveries in Santa Monica

Today, Motional and Uber launched autonomous deliveries for Uber Eats customers in Santa Monica, California. Motional’s all-electric IONIQ 5 vehicles, operating autonomously, are now conducting end-to-end food deliveries.

“Autonomous delivery signifies the next phase of Motional’s commercial roadmap,” said Abe Ghabra, Motional’s Chief Operating Officer. “This service will provide the learnings and experience needed to make Motional the trusted AV provider for on-demand delivery networks. We’re proud to partner with Uber on this important milestone and begin introducing Uber Eats customers to autonomous technology...”

Chipotle Launches $50 Million Venture Fund to Foster Innovation

Chipotle is launching a $50 million venture fund.

Chipotle Mexican Grill is hoping to revolutionize the restaurant industry.

The quick-service restaurant chain announced the launch of Cultivate Next, a venture fund that will support seed-to-Series B stage companies that focus on increasing technology and innovation in restaurant operations and align with its mission to “Cultivate a Better World.” The fund will have an initial size of $50 million and will be financed solely by Chipotle.

The fund launch comes as the company is continuing its...