Uber Eats expands its autonomous food delivery service to Japan

Following its autonomous food delivery launch in Miami and Fairfax, Virginia, Uber Eats will soon be offering the same robotic service in Japan — its first outside the US. It is once again collaborating with Google alum startup Cartken, with local compliance help from Mitsubishi Electric, to bring a fleet of Model C sidewalk delivery robots to select areas in Tokyo in March. Uber Eats Japan CEO Shintaro Nakagawa says the autonomous delivery service will solve the local labor shortage issue, while complementing the existing human delivery methods "by bicycle, motorbike, light cargo, and on foot."

Cartken's six-wheeled Model C uses six cameras and advanced AI models for autonomous driving plus obstacle detection, and remote control mode is available when needed. With guidance from Mitsubishi, the robot has been modified to suit local needs in Japan. For one, its speed is capped at 5.4 km/h or about 3.36 mph as per local regulation, which is a lot slower than the 6 mph top speed it's actually capable of. The loading capacity has also been reduced from 1.5 cubic feet to about 0.95 cubic feet (27 liters), likely due to the extra thermal insulation in the compartment. Uber Eats adds that for the sake of privacy, people's faces are automatically masked in footage captured by the robots.

While this is Uber Eats' robotic delivery debut in Japan, Cartken already has a presence there thanks to Mitsubishi. Since early 2022, the duo has worked with Starbucks, local e-commerce giant Rakuten and supermarket chain Seiyu in some parts of Japan. In the US, Cartken also has a partnership with Grubhub to provide autonomous food delivery service on college campuses, including the Ohio State University and the University of Arizona.

Even though Uber Eats has yet to share which Tokyo restaurants will be tapping into its robotic delivery service, it should have no problem seeking partnership given Cartken's prior local experience. That said, I highly doubt that the pair would risk trialing their robots through a crowd of drunkards in Shibuya just yet.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/uber-eats-expands-its-autonomous-food-delivery-service-to-japan-092727592.html?src=rss https://www.engadget.com/uber-eats-expands-its-autonomous-food-delivery-service-to-japan-092727592.html?src=rss
Établi 1y | 21 févr. 2024, 11:10:15


Connectez-vous pour ajouter un commentaire

Autres messages de ce groupe

MLB will test its robot umpire system at the next All-Star Game

While human umpires will still make the first call at the

9 juil. 2025, 21:50:24 | Engadget
OpenAI and Jony Ive's startup seal the deal

OpenAI's deal with Jony Ive's startup is a done deal. Ive's io has officially

9 juil. 2025, 21:50:23 | Engadget
T-Mobile ends DEI programs in attempt to win deal approvals from the FCC

T-Mobile has abandoned all of its programs for diversity, equity and inclusion. In a

9 juil. 2025, 21:50:22 | Engadget
Prime Day deals discount the Amazon Smart Plug down to only $13

If you're looking for an ultra-affordable away to make a part of your home a little smarter, look no further than the

9 juil. 2025, 21:50:16 | Engadget
NASA will lose over 2,000 senior staff due to proposed Trump budget cuts

NASA is set to lose at least 2,145 senior staff members as part of the Trump administration's push for budget cuts,

9 juil. 2025, 21:50:14 | Engadget