Uber Eats will begin testing autonomous drone deliveries for some orders by the end of this year. The program will be piloted in select US markets and utilize drones provided by Flytrex, a company in which Uber has also invested. Together, the two companies hope to deliver “orders in minutes while reducing congestion and emissions.” Uber currently uses cars, bikes, couriers, and sidewalk robots for delivery.Uber Eats first tested drone deliveries in 2019. Back then, it used drones from its own Elevate division, but the project couldn’t take off due to regulatory limits, and the division was eventually sold to an air taxi company called Joby. Drone deliveries are slowly gaining momentum in the US. Amazon delivers packages in select regions through its Prime Air service, while Walmart relies on Alphabet-backed Wing. What is your take in rapid shift in food deliivery services ?
