The bright, bright future of delivery!
Steaming hot rice noodles delivered to your doorstep{goals!}. Yes, it’s already a thing- I know. But… what if the delivery is done by a drone, or robot?
The problem
The delivery is an essential key point for e-commerce retailers. It seems to be an ongoing and increasing struggle though: as small retailers cannot compete with the big guys. Big retailers can offer low delivery prices, but the smaller companies cannot go this low, without suffering great losses.
“If you account for taking the order, fulfilling the order, delivering and then dealing with the returns, in food: the industry figure for how much it costs is £15 per order,” -Richard Hyman, analyst, source
But let’s not focus on e-commerce. We’re talking about food right now{❤}. The struggle with food delivery is time, and distance limitations. No one is delighted by a cold pizza.
DRU
So how can we ensure quick delivery, everywhere? Domino’s had the answer with its robotic unit- conveniently named Domino’s Robotic Unit, or DRU. It’s still a prototype, but it may soon become a reality! DRU has four wheels and is specially designed to move on walking paths and sidewalks. Thanks to its sensors it knows how to avoid ovoid obstacles, with GPS it’s aware of its location, and it is perfect for every delivery with a cooler and a hot plate warmer.
You get a code after placing your order, and with that you can take out your items when the bot arrives.
Starship
This is another delivery robot{yay}! It was designed by Starship Technologies. It’s not as functionally advanced as DRU, but it’s something. It’s already piloted in the US, Germany and the UK for delivering packages of up to 10 kilograms, and with a maximum distance of 6 kilometers.
Fun fact: there is also a robot butler that brings you room service →check it out!
Drones-as-a-service
Drones could be really useful in delivering orders to customers. It is a quick and efficient way.
The Federal Aviation Administration- which governs all civil aviation in the US- predicted that in four year, there will be over 7 million drones sold annually. This only within the US itself. This is a massive and drastic increase, since they claimed there were only 25.000 sold in 2012.
Amazon
This blog was written by → Renee Kramer
Industry4magazine Is a project created by Rudy Bianco, serial entrepreneur, founder of the A.I. Startup Marketeer Lab and author of Escribe Tu Futuro — Write Your Future — , for trying to understand the implications of those advances in our daily lives.
I’m so curious about the future and I always want to participate in it! →
