Sodexo and Starship Rolls Out a Robotic Food Delivery Service in George Mason University

Sodexo, the France-based Hospitality Company and Starship Technologies, a robotic vehicle maker has jointly rolled an on-demand-food delivery services via robots at George Mason University, the US.

Both the companies will install a team of over 25 mobile-based robots to deliver food to a community of around 40,000 which includes students, teachers and other staffs in the state of Virginia.

The initiative will mark the largest implementation of autonomous robots in delivering foods on a university campus, and is a part of Sodexo’s next-gen tech portfolio for Universities and colleges.

There is also an app for the robotic services available to all iOS and Android users. The users can order food and beverages according to their preferences and get it delivered anywhere inside the campus. The retailers which are a part of the new initiative are Starbucks, Dunkin Doughnuts and Blaze Pizza and also 2nd stop, a campus grocery store branded by Sodexo. Apart from the food cost, users will be charged an on-demand delivery cost, i.e. $1.99.

The app also allows the user to order food to their specified address through a drop of a pin while ordering. The users can also keep a track on the robot while the delivering process with an interactive map. After the arrival of the robot to the specified destination, the users get notified through an alert on their phones and meet the robot and open it with the help of the app.

The company promises to deliver within 15 minutes or less depending upon the type of order and the distance. The robots has a capacity of 20 pounds.