Robot delivery will be available on
Ohio State University's campus this
fall
CHICAGO and OAKLAND,
Calif., June 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Grubhub, the
leading online and mobile food-ordering and delivery platform on
college campuses, and Cartken, a technology startup that
specializes in self-driving, AI-powered robotics and delivery
operations, announced a partnership today to bring robot delivery
to college campuses. This delivery was piloted at Ohio State University this spring, and a full roll
out is expected when students return to campus this fall.
Grubhub partners with more than 250 college campuses across
the United States to give students
the ability to integrate meal plans directly into their Grubhub
account and access restaurants both on- and off-campus for delivery
and pickup. The partnership with Cartken for autonomous robot
delivery builds on Grubhub's existing campus offering and is a
seamless fit for campus environments, which are notoriously
difficult for cars to navigate.
"Robot delivery is exciting for students and helps provide even
better service and innovative solutions to our campus partners,"
said Eric Harper, senior director of
campus environments at Grubhub. "We've worked with Ohio State University for years on the campus
dining front, and they are always an early adopter of solutions
that create efficiencies for their operations and improve the
student experience. We look forward to supporting our university
partners and responding to their unique delivery environments as we
roll out this technology at other campuses in the coming
months."
Cartken's robots navigate pavements, crosswalks and pedestrian
paths within the campus area without human guidance. The robots use
Cartken's artificial intelligence (AI) and camera-based navigation
and mapping technology, which the company developed for small
autonomous vehicles to safely operate around pedestrians. Human
override remains an option if necessary – for instance when a path
is blocked – guaranteeing reliable operation and minimizing
delivery delays. Cartken's robots operate at up to three miles per
hour on campus and handle various weather conditions, including
rain and snow.
"We're thrilled to be working with Grubhub to delight students
and campus staff with robot delivery," said Christian Bersch, CEO of Cartken. "This
collaboration perfectly aligns with our mission to use robotics and
AI technology to provide friction-free and environmentally
sustainable delivery, and have robots serve the community. We are
excited to scale alongside Grubhub and offer robot delivery to
students on campuses across the country."
"Robot delivery has been very popular on campus this past school
year, validating our prediction that students would appreciate
autonomous mobile delivery," said Zia
Ahmed, senior director of Student Life Dining Services at
Ohio State University. "We are excited
about the return of robots to campus, and we have been testing the
Cartken robots during the spring semester with the same vision to
lower the cost of delivery, reduce the time it takes to deliver
food and enhance sustainability."
For more information on how administrators can bring this
delivery experience to their campus, please visit here.
About Grubhub:
Grubhub is part of Just Eat Takeaway.com (LSE: JET) (AMS: TKWY),
a leading global online food delivery marketplace. Dedicated to
connecting more than 32 million diners with the food they love from
their favorite local restaurants, Grubhub elevates food ordering
through innovative restaurant technology, easy-to-use platforms and
an improved delivery experience. Grubhub features more than 320,000
restaurant partners in over 4,000 U.S. cities.
About Cartken:
Cartken makes communities more connected by bridging the
distance between customers and the local businesses they love. Our
autonomous robot platform is designed to transport goods over short
distances in malls, business parks and local neighborhoods. We use
advanced autonomous technology, making our robots the safest and
most reliable in the market today. Cartken's team of engineers and
operators combine deep expertise in self-driving cars, AI-powered
robotics and delivery operations.
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SOURCE Grubhub Inc.