DoorDash announces autonomous delivery robot Dot

DoorDash (DASH) announced Dot, the the first commercial autonomous robot built to travel “seamlessly” on bike lanes, roads, sidewalks, and driveways, and specifically designed for local delivery. At one-tenth the size of a car, Dot is designed for quick deliveries and engineered for safety. Reaching speeds of up to 20 mph, Dot is built for neighborhood trips to help local businesses meet growing consumer demand, the company said. Its all-electric design is right-sized for local delivery, helping reduce congestion and emissions, and resulting in fewer cars on the road and safer streets. Dot is designed for secure, agile item handoffs that integrate seamlessly into merchant operations, while ensuring a smooth, reliable experience for consumers. Dot will begin with an early access program in Tempe and Mesa, Arizona. “You don’t always need a full-sized car to deliver a tube of toothpaste or pack of diapers. That’s the insight behind Dot,” said Stanley Tang, Co-Founder and Head of DoorDash Labs. “The breakthrough wasn’t just making it autonomous, but in making it reliable and efficient to serve the needs of local businesses and consumers. Dot is purpose-built for the millions of deliveries we facilitate every day. It is small enough to navigate doorways and driveways, fast enough to maintain food quality, and smart enough to optimize the best routes for delivery. Every design decision, from its compact size to its speed to the sensor suite, came from analyzing billions of deliveries on our global platform and understanding what actually moves the needle for merchants and consumers.”