DoorDash Plans to Deploy Delivery Robots in Suburban Bike Lanes

DoorDash plans to introduce a new type of delivery robot designed for mid-range trips in suburbs, hinting that they plan to deploy them in bike lanes.

As Chris Velazco explains in The Washington Post, the robot, dubbed Dot, is “about 4½ feet tall, weighs 350 pounds and can carry deliveries of up to 30 pounds in a modular cargo space that opens and closes like a giant mouth.”

The robot, which is currently deployed in the Phoenix area, can travel at a speed of up to 20 miles per hour. “DoorDash leaders also repeatedly highlighted the way Dot robots could use bike lanes to traverse suburban roads, but at a little under three feet wide, these machines could stymie cyclists trying to use those same limited patches of asphalt.”

According to the company, “The core sensor, hardware, and software approach is similar to that of robotaxis, enabling the kind of reliable, door-to-door autonomous deliveries that customers expect and merchants rely on.” Over time, the robots are likely to incrementally replace DoorDash’s human workers. “For now, though, Dot’s limitations — it’s not fast enough to drive on freeways and not nimble enough to tackle stairs or elevators — means the human touch isn’t going anywhere.”