Self-driving robots deliver food to your door after
founders of Skype launch new tech company
• 13:55, 29 MAR
2016
• UPDATED 13:55,
29 MAR 2016
• BY KELLY-ANN
MILLS
The robots are out in Greenwich, London, taking groceries
to people in under 30 minutes
These six-wheeled robots could be arriving at your door
soon as deliveries start across London.
The self-driving machine is packed with nine cameras, GPS
and is monitored by real people who can immediately step in and take remote
control.
They can carry two full grocery bags and will be with you
in 30 minutes or less, and with delivery costing under a £1, this could be a real
winner.
Launched by Starship Technologies, a company set up by
the co-founders of Skype, they have been riding around parts of Greenwich as
part of a trial.
The robot takes a look around London
But if you think you could just grab it and run off with
the goods inside, you might want to
"It's quite bulky and not easy to pick up, plus it
has nine cameras and GPS," a spokeswoman told Mirror Online.
"If someone tried to steal it, we would have their
picture and the police could track them with the GPS."
The robots ride on the pavement and are designed to
detect people and other obstacles, adjusting their speed, stopping at roads,
and as our footage shows they are courteous too.
Ahti Heinla, a Skype co-founder and CEO at Starship
Technologies said: "Our vision revolves around three zeroes – zero cost,
zero waiting time and zero environmental impact.
"We want to do to local deliveries what Skype did to
telecommunications."
Throughout the next six months, the robots will be
visiting towns and cities across the UK, before trials start in the USA too.
The robot has been in development for almost two years,
and we’ve experienced unprecedented levels of interest and goodwill – so it’s
great to now be taking the first step to rolling our little robot out for real.
"The robot has been very well-received by
pedestrians in all of the interactions we’ve seen so far, so it’s very exciting
to be officially introducing the robot to the British public.”
Comments
Post a Comment