Grubhub is partnering with yet another autonomous technology startup to ferry food orders to college students via robot.
As part of a new deal with Avride, Grubhub will deploy 100 delivery robots at The Ohio State University (OSU). While social media is full of videos featuring delivery robots stuck on curbs or in piles of snow, Grubhub and Avride say these robots can operate in challenging conditions like rain or snow and handle high volumes of deliveries.
They also come with customizable LED panels that can be modified to reflect the campus’ identity.
According to Grubhub’s support page, once a student places an order, the kitchen prepares the food and loads it onto the robot. The robot then takes the food to a drop-off spot, where the student uses the app to open the compartment and pick up their food.
“Our robots have already proven their value in campus environments,” says Avride CEO Dmitry Polishchuk, who expects to see “hundreds of our robots” on campuses this year.
Grubhub has been deploying food delivery robots on college campuses since 2021, when it teamed up with Yandex for deliveries at OSU from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week. It then expanded to the University of Kentucky, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Wayne State University, Southern Methodist University, and Fairfield University using Starship’s robots in 2022.
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This week, Grubhub also began autonomous delivery services at Colorado State University using Starship’s robots—which are active on more than 55 campuses in the US.
“Students love the convenience of robot delivery, and we’re excited to continue offering our campus partners a variety of delivery options to best meet their unique needs,” says Rob DelaCruz, VP and general manager of Grubhub Campus.
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About Jibin Joseph
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