The e-commerce giant eyes specialized four-legged robots to assist third-party contractors with the final leg of the delivery process.
Amazon is stepping up its mechanical delivery capabilities this week by acquiring the Swiss robotics company Rivr which is creating machines capable of doorstep deliveries. The e-commerce giant purchased Rivr earlier this week without much fanfare and even on the Rivr website there is no indication that it has been acquired by Amazon.
The tech giant announced the deal in a notice sent to third-party delivery contractors. It stated:
“We want to share that we’ve recently acquired RIVR, a company focused on technology that can help with doorstep delivery. We believe this technology, when working alongside your [delivery associates], has the potential to further improve safety outcomes and the overall customer experience, particularly in the last steps of the delivery process.”
Currently, Amazon partners with a whole network of thousands of third-party contractors to get parcels to their destination. They are responsible for the last leg of the journey where packages go from an Amazon warehouse to the customer’s doorstep.
Amazon said that Rivr has been working on products such as a four-legged robot on wheels. It will use these to help figure out what devices could be integrated into delivery options. It confirmed that it is still in the early stages of this journey but wants to scale in the future.
With breakthroughs in AI in recent years, many of these big tech firms are turning their attention to robotics. As populations age, robotics could eventually step in to pick up some of the slack when it comes to labor.
Source: The Information via CNBC
