Deliveroo and Coco plan robot deliveries in five UK locations

Deliveroo and Coco Robotics plan to begin autonomous food deliveries in Canary Wharf in October, then extend the service to Milton Keynes, Leeds, Stockton-on-Tees and Nottingham over the coming weeks and months. The companies described the launches as a UK rollout, but have not provided firm dates for the four later locations. The announcement names Canary Wharf, in London, as the first site. Deliveries there are expected to start with a small group of merchants in Wood Wharf, including PattyBun, Signorelli and Beam. The companies said more businesses could be added later. In Milton Keynes, Smoke and Pepper and 5 Akhis were among the businesses identified as potential participants when the service arrives. Deliveroo said most orders will continue to be handled by its human rider network. It has not specified what proportion of deliveries robots might take on or set a timeframe for that share. The service is intended to supplement the existing network, with the robots handling some short-distance orders in urban areas. Coco’s four-wheeled robots are fully electric and travel at walking pace, using onboard cameras, sensors and artificial intelligence to navigate public streets.