Autonomous delivery firm Cartken teams with Mitsubishi Electric
San Francisco-based Cartken’s Model C robots have been chosen by Mitsubishi Electric for a pilot project at AEON MALL Tokoname, Japan.
The robots will provide indoor and curbside food delivery services to customers.
“Safety and dependability are the most important vectors of an excellent experience with autonomous delivery robots,” says Naoki Fujita, Manager at Mitsubishi Electric's Mobility Innovation Department.
“Safety for the people the robot will interact with en route, and dependability of service to the end customer.”
“Cartken’s consistently high rating in these areas for both indoor and outdoor settings made them an excellent choice for this partnership as we think more broadly about Mitsubishi Electric’s future in the increasingly high-touch deployments of autonomous robotics.”
While Cartken's robots have full autonomy, they are equipped with a remote monitoring system that allows for instantaneous human override if necessary.
Cartken Co-founder and COO, Anjali Jindal Naik, says: “Our aim is to develop market beating tech with broader viability across verticals, not just the novelty that comes with an “MVP” autonomous delivery service.”
“We're thrilled that admired companies like Mitsubishi Electric, who have paved the way in so many industries, recognise the quality of our platform, and we look forward to driving the next era of autonomous robotics in one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world.”
Beginning this month, AEON MALL Tokoname, will oversee a pilot where customers can use the Starbucks app to select their food and beverage order. A Cartken robot will meet the customer at one of the delivery points inside or outside the mall.
Mitsubishi Electric is also looking at other use cases.
Fujita says: “The partnership with Cartken could help Mitsubishi Electric tap into a huge market for autonomous delivery robots in Japan.”
“The technology allows us to discover untapped opportunities in new verticals and we're already enthusiastically working alongside their team to develop this program further.”
