The autonomous grocery vehicle that brings the store to you

We just got to see, what might be the future of grocery delivery. The Robomart RM5 is an all new, shuttle-bus size delivery vehicle, that’s coming to Texas roads in September.

It is fully autonomous and electric, weighs 2,205 pounds, a top speed of 25mph, and has a range 112 miles. It features ten climate-controlled lockers, each holding around 50 lbs, which totals to around 500 lbs of payload.

Here’s how it works. Users will order via an app from multiple retailers and the RM5 will dispatch to pick up and combine orders. Each customer will get a specific locker that they unlock via the app upon vehicle arrival. This is a contactless, convenience oriented system.

This will bring delivery costs down significantly. It will cost only a $3 fee with no markups, service fees, or tips. In efficiency, it claims to have up to 70% lower running costs, then human delivery, and also supported by the ability to carry up to 50× more than sidewalk bots and drones.

Competitors like Uber Eats and DoorDash are testing sidewalk bots and small autonomous units. RM5’s differentiator is its shuttle style and huge capacity and flat-rate pricing. The RM5 shows a shift from small delivery robots to fleet-capable, multi order vehicles.

With manufacture partners able to make up to 1,000 RM5s, it could become a normal sight on roads in the future. What do you think about this new grocery delivery system? Would you use it if you could. Leave your answer in the comments!