Waymo will even drive for DoorDash in Phoenix

Waymo has announced a brand new partnership with DoorDash that may make the corporate’s self-driving automobiles a supply choice for customers in Phoenix, Arizona. You’ll be able to already hail a ride in Waymo’s Arizona service space, however this new partnership will give the corporate’s automobiles one thing to do after they’re not transporting human cargo.

To begin, Waymo says that deliveries will probably be restricted to issues you may order by DashMart, DoorDash’s storefront for comfort and grocery shops. Ultimately, although, deliveries will “embrace extra native Phoenix retailers and a greater variety of choices.”

So as to check out a Waymo supply, you will have to position your order by DoorDash and “decide in to autonomous supply” throughout checkout. As soon as Waymo’s automobile arrives, very similar to DoorDash’s Dot robot, you will then need to bodily go away your own home and acquire your order from the automobile’s trunk to finish the supply. A part of the comfort (and complication) of DoorDash is getting what you ordered delivered to your door. A Waymo supply may flip some individuals off, because it makes that choice inconceivable.

After all, this is not the primary time Waymo has delivered meals in Phoenix. In 2024 the corporate partnered with Uber Eats for the same program, with related limitations round how deliveries had been accomplished and the place meals may very well be ordered from. Waymo runs its personal robotaxi service in Arizona, Waymo One, however relying on the area, it is also provided rides by third-party companions like Uber. Its partnerships with Uber Eats and DoorDash seem to be variations on the identical concept.

In 2020, Waymo was exploring utilizing self-driving long-haul trucks for deliveries. The corporate abandoned those plans in 2023 to prioritize robotaxis and the Waymo Driver software program, however these exams with DoorDash and Uber Eats may very well be a sign that Waymo is all for pursuing deliveries on a smaller scale.