Walmart collaborates with Cruise, a self-driving car provider, to deliver your orders from early 2021. The pilot program will allow Walmart to offer contactless delivery of orders to its customers to reduce the transfer of coronavirus. The association between the world’s largest retailer and Cruise is also a move toward Walmart’s zero-emission by 2040 to protect the planet from harmful pollutants.
Since the pandemic, Walmart has double down on autonomous delivery of grocery and health and wellness products through drones in the US. While a pilot program was launched in Fayetteville, North Carolina, on September 9, Walmart deployed more drones to deliver COVID-19 self-collection kits on September 22.
In late 2020, autonomous driving vehicle providers, especially self-driving car providers like Waymo, Tesla, Cruise, and others, have gained momentum due to the approval of offering robotaxi service without safety drivers. After years of delay in deploying self-driving cars, various companies are eventually being able to deliver on the promise of revamping the transport industry with complete autonomy.
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However, for delivering your Walmart orders, Cruise will have a safety driver in place during its pilot phase. On November 14, 2018, Walmart also had a similar deal with Ford for the autonomous delivery of groceries in Miami. And in 2019, the retailer joined forces with Nuro to grocery delivery in Texas.
Several companies, including food delivery firms like DoorDash and Postmates, have adopted self-driving cars, but Walmart has been at the forefront of trying to revamp the delivery service for superior customer experience.
“You’ve seen us test drive with self-driving cars in the past, and we’re continuing to learn a lot about how they can shape the future of retail. We’re excited to add Cruise to our lineup of autonomous vehicle pilots as we continue to chart a whole new roadmap for retail,” notes Tom Ward, SVP of Customer Product, Walmart US, in a press release.
