Kicker: Delivery bots

MARY REICHARD, HOST: A San Francisco-based company wants to deliver hot pizzas, donuts, and more to your doorstep.

Local food delivery is nothing new. But their company vehicles are craning necks.

EICHER: Weinermobiles, like yesterday?

REICHARD: Nope, think smaller.

EICHER: Bicycles??

REICHARD: Not small enough! No, Starship Technologies is testing delivery robots!

They look like a large cooler with six wheels. If you see one driving itself down the sidewalk,  chances are it’s a robot on a mission.

College campuses are ground zero for test sites. The knee-high robots can climb curbs and carry up to 20 pounds.

But what’ll become of delivery drivers? Not to worry. Starship’s marketing VP Henry Harris-Burland says the robot’s not a job-killer.

AUDIO: Delivery drivers in vans are still the most efficient method of delivery over the first 10 miles. Our robots take over only over the last one or two miles.

So far customers say it’s not the fastest way to get your food but it’s definitely the most futuristic!

It’s The World and Everything in It.

(AP Photo/Matthew Barakat) A Starship robot stands by at George Mason University campus in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2019. 

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