30 robots will be making on-demand deliveries from on-campus merchants
Starship Technologies announced that its robots have started on-demand food deliveries at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC Charlotte). Starship’s fleet of 30 autonomous, on-demand robots are now delivering from Wendy’s, Bojangles and Shake Smart and will add more campus eateries throughout March, with 10 onboard by the end of the month. The school’s nearly 30,000 students and faculty can now use the Starship Food Delivery app (iOS and Android) to order food and drinks from campus retailers to be delivered anywhere on campus, within minutes. The service works in conjunction with the student meal plan (TBC).
Senior Jordan Badenhop said students are excited for the rollout: “The Starship robots are definitely making a conversation among students across campus. I think they are going to enjoy the ease of ordering delivery to wherever they are, from study spots to their dorm. It beats waiting in line for your favorite snack!”
Starship is already providing services to campuses across the country, including Bowling Green State University, Missouri State University, University of Houston, and the University of Illinois Chicago. Since launch, all campuses have increased the number of robots, dining options and hours of operation to meet the high demand for the service.
To get started, users open the Starship Food Delivery app and choose from a range of their favorite food or drink items, then drop a pin where they want their delivery to be sent. They can then watch as the robot makes its journey to them, via an interactive map. Once the robot arrives, they receive an alert, and can then meet and unlock it through the app. Delivery hours vary at the participating campus restaurants and payment options include credit and debit cards and the student meal plan.
Starship Technologies’ zero-emission robots have made more than 4 million autonomous deliveries, traveled millions of miles and make more than 140,000 road crossings every day. The robots use a combination of sophisticated machine learning, artificial intelligence and sensors to travel on sidewalks and navigate around obstacles. The computer vision-based navigation helps the robots to map their environment to the nearest inch. The robots can cross streets, climb curbs, travel at night and operate in both rain and snow. A team of humans also monitors their progress remotely and can take control at a moment’s notice.
Source: Starship Technologies
