Albuquerque, NM / San Francisco, CA. — Grubhub and Starship Technologies, in partnership with UNM Food, will launch a robotic food delivery service on the University of New Mexico (UNM) campus on Monday, August 19.
Starship’s fleet of autonomous, on-demand robots will deliver from eight campus restaurants: Blake’s Lotaburger, Draft & Table, Dion’s, Einstein’s Bros. Bagels, Mandalay Express, Starbucks, Subway and The Drop. UNM students, faculty and staff can now use the Grubhub app (available for iOS and Android) to order food and drinks from local retailers for delivery within minutes anywhere on UNM’s central campus. The service works in conjunction with UNM’s meal plans.
Aaron Herrera, a student at UNM, was excited about the introduction of the automated service: “I think the Starship robots are really cute and fun to see on campus. It’s always exciting to see more innovative technology on campus and I hope everyone enjoys sharing the space with them.”
Grubhub and Starship already offer robotic food delivery services to campuses across the country, including the University of Kentucky, Fairfield University, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Wayne State University and Southern Methodist University. Since launching, all campuses have increased the number of robots, food options and hours of operation to meet high demand for the service.
To get started, users open the Grubhub app, choose from a range of their favourite food or drink, then select the location where they want the delivery sent. They can then use an interactive map to track the robot’s journey to them. Once the robot arrives, they receive a notification and can then meet and unlock it through the app. Delivery typically takes just a few minutes, depending on the menu items ordered and the distance the robot has to travel. Each robot can carry the equivalent of about three grocery bags full of goods.
Starship Technologies operates commercially around the world every day. Its zero-emission robots have made nearly 7 million autonomous deliveries, traveled millions of miles, and cross more than 150,000 roads every day. The robots use a combination of sophisticated machine learning, artificial intelligence, and sensors to navigate sidewalks and avoid obstacles. Computer vision-based navigation helps the robots map their surroundings with centimeter-level accuracy. The robots can cross roads, climb curbs, drive at night, and operate in both rain and snow.
“Having delivery robots on our campus is more than just convenient – it demonstrates our commitment to staying at the forefront of technology and innovation,” said Alicia Solano, assistant vice president of Campus Business Services. “Through a rigorous RFP process, we carefully selected partners who share our vision of enhancing the campus experience in meaningful ways. This collaboration with Grubhub and Starship Technologies not only simplifies the daily lives of our students, faculty and staff, but also aligns with our broader goals of sustainability and efficiency. We are excited to see how this cutting-edge service will enrich our campus community.”
About UNM Food
UNM Food is an inclusive and creative food program that supports academic success and creates a community atmosphere within the university. UNM Food is known for its diverse and high-quality food offerings. Whether customers prefer the various outlets in the Student Union Building or across campus, UNM Food provides customers with a memorable and positive experience. UNM Food is led by Amanda Gerard, who is committed to providing innovative and exceptional dining experiences to the campus community.
About Starship Technologies
Starship Technologies is revolutionizing delivery with autonomous robots. The robots are designed to deliver food, groceries and packages to locations within minutes. The delivery robots have traveled millions of miles and made nearly seven million autonomous deliveries worldwide. Starship was founded by Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis (chief architect and co-founder of Skype).
