Customers at Uber Eats in Atlanta are now able to choose to serve meals via sidewalk delivery robots following the launch of partner Serv Robotics on Thursday. The move comes just two days after Uber and Waymo launched commercial Robotaxi services in the city.
Serve, which spun from Uber in 2021 before enduring the open market last year, is one of 18 autonomous vehicle companies that Uber partnered to gain first-mover advantage in the consumer-oriented aspect of autonomousness. The Ridehale and the delivery giant said there is an annual run rate of 1.5 million mobility and delivery AV trips on the network.
Atlanta Marks will serve in its fourth commercial city after launching in partnership with Uber in Los Angeles, Miami and Dallas Forthworth. Unlike many of its competitors that have grown by enrolling in university campuses, Saab is only available in urban settings. CEO Ali Kashani told TechCrunch that this was because sidewalks on city streets would be a more difficult issue to increase income opportunities.
Serve did not share the number of bots it deployed in Atlanta at the time of its launch, but the company expects to expand from around 100 bots in Los Angeles to 2,000 in several US cities by the end of 2025.
A Saab spokesperson told TechCrunch that Uber Eats customers can receive robot delivery across Metro Atlanta (from midtown to old ward to downtown Atlanta). According to Uber, the service will be available from 9am to 10pm.
Participating restaurants in Atlanta include Rreal Tacos, Ponko Chicken and Shake Shack.
