The Co-op is expanding its UK rollout of autonomous food delivery by launching robots at stores in Leeds.
The convenience retailer has partnered with technology company Starship Technologies and Leeds City Council to bring autonomous grocery delivery to the city.
The service will be available to 20,000 residents initially within the Adel and Tinshill area of Leeds, with orders able to be made through the Starship food delivery app.
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Leeds residents will be able to choose from a range of grocery items, schedule their delivery, then decide where they want their delivery to be sent.
Customers can order their delivery to arrive in under an hour and watch the robot travel in real-time via an interactive map.
Since launching commercial deliveries in 2018, Starship’s robots have safely completed more than four million deliveries around the world.
When the robots were first introduced into the UK, an estimated 1.1 million miles of car journeys have been saved with a 445-tonne reduction in CO2 emissions.
The robots are battery powered, lightweight and travel at the speed of a pedestrian (no faster than 4mph).
Starship says the robots use a “combination of sensors, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to travel on pavements and navigate around any obstacles,” while computer vision-based navigation helps them map their environment.
The expansion in the North of England for the first time follows the successful introduction of autonomous deliveries in Milton Keynes, Bedford, Northampton, Cambourne, and most recently Cambridge.
“Co-op is committed to exploring new and innovative ways to increase access to its products and services. Our members and customers lead busy lives and so ease, speed and convenience are a cornerstone of our approach,” eCommerce Director at the Co-op, Chris Conway said.
“We are delighted to be expanding into Yorkshire to provide flexible, quick and convenient options online for shoppers in our communities,” he added.
Leeds City Council’s executive member for infrastructure and climate, councillor Helen Hayden, commented: “As a council we are absolutely committed to delivering alternative, sustainable methods of travel to help reach our target of becoming net-zero by 2030.
“We are trying to reduce the number of short journeys made by car, including those made by delivery vehicles. I’m really excited by the launch of this pilot, which will be trialled for three months in north-west Leeds.
“Since the pandemic, we have seen a huge increase in the number of home deliveries – this pilot will be transformative and will provide an alternative home delivery provision for residents,” Hayden said.
“We are delighted to bring the benefits of autonomous delivery to residents in Leeds,” Starship Technologies CEO, Alastair Westgarth said.
He added that this is their first significant expansion to the north of England, and “we are confident the robots will make a positive impact in terms of actively reducing traffic congestion and carbon emissions, while also providing ease and convenience for local communities.”
Westgarth followed up saying: “We are looking forward to working closely with Leeds City Council and Co-op and hope to further expand our service to more parts of Leeds and the wider Yorkshire region in the near future.”
