Starship Technologies Expands Robot Grocery Delivery To Second Northern California Store

Starship Technologies, a autonomous delivery startup, has begun delivering groceries at Save Mart Companies’ Lucky grocery store in Pleasanton, California.

This is an expansion of the partnership between Starship and Save Mart that launched in September 2020 at Save Mart’s flagship store in Modesto.

“We are very pleased to bring the benefits of autonomous delivery to Pleasanton, in partnership with Lucky California,” Ryan Tuohy, head of Starship sales and business development, said in a statement. “Since launching our service in Modesto in 2020, we’ve been excited to see the extremely positive reaction to the robots and how they were embraced as part of the local community.”

Each of Starship’s robots can carry up to 20 pounds, or about three shopping bags, in a trunk-like compartment. Customers can select what they want from Starship’s secure ordering app.

The robots travel on sidewalks, cross streets and climb curves in order to deliver to shoppers’ homes or apartments. They can not climb stairs however.

Battery-powered, the self-propelled devices are equipped with embedded cameras that can detect obstacle on the delivery routes, which can range somewhere between three and four miles. They can travel at a maximum speed of 4 miles per hour, which is slower than many humans can walk.

“Since the debut of our contactless delivery service at the Modesto store, feedback from the community has been incredible positive,” said Barbara Walker, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the Save Mart Companies.

She said Save Mart expects to expand the service to other locations in northern California eventually.

College campuses are another target market for Starship. The Verge reported that the company currently has a fleet of 1,000 robots on about 20 campuses.

Starship claims it has made more than 1.5 million deliveries since its founding in 2012. It has raised about $100 million over those eight years.