Robot vehicles start unmanned deliveries in Arizona

A self-driving technology company has launched a delivery service that's available to members of the public and uses vehicles that have no humans aboard.

Silicon Valley startup Nuro commenced service Tuesday in collaboration with grocery chain Kroger in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Deliveries will be made in a custom-built vehicle known as the R1. Unlike some of the so-called self-driving commercial deployments that have recently started, these vehicles have no human safety drivers aboard.

From Ford's work in Miami with partners such as Domino's Pizza and Postmates to Volkswagen's pilot project optimizing routes in Barcelona, Spain, automakers and tech companies alike see much promise in the potential profits associated with autonomous delivery services. So do grocery stores and big-box retailers, which are both attempting to find ways to compete with Amazon and its Prime subscription service.

It's perhaps a surprise that a startup like Nuro is first to the market. But the company has been developing the R1 since 2016. More recently, it has tested its self-driving system on the streets of Scottsdale while using a fleet of retrofitted Toyota Priuses.

"Nuro envisions a world without errands, where everything is on-demand and can be delivered affordably," Dave Ferguson, the company's president and co-founder, said in a statement. "Operating a delivery service using our custom unmanned vehicles is an important first step toward that goal."

For starters, customers can use the autonomous delivery service from a single location of Kroger's Fry's Food Stores in Scottsdale. Service is available to anyone in the 85257 ZIP code, and customers meet the delivery vehicles at the curb. The service has a $5.95 fee, with no minimum order required.

While there are no humans aboard the R1, the vehicles can be controlled by a remote operator should they encounter a situation that flummoxes the self-driving system. The R1 runs on public roads at speeds up to 25 miles per hour, according to a spokesperson.