An unmanned aerial system capable of vertical take-off and landing
might transport your Uber Eats orders in the future. The ride-hailing
company, which has been expanding its repertoire recently, has unveiled
a new design for its food delivery drone at the Forbes 30 under 30
Summit. Uber's drone design has rotating wings with six rotors "for
increased speed and efficiency" and can carry meals for up to two
people. Its battery can only last for around eight minutes, including
loading and unloading, and it only has a range of 12 miles for a
roundtrip delivery -- but that's OK, because Uber expects to use it for
just a part of the process.
The drone won't be landing on your yard with your food in tow. After a
restaurant loads the machine with your order, it'll fly to a drop-off
point where an Uber driver will be taking over the delivery process.
Uber's Elevate Cloud Systems, its airspace management system, will be tracking
the drone and notifying the driver when the order is ready and where to
pick it up. So, you'll still be dealing with a delivery personnel --
you may just get your meals faster than before.
Back in 2018, company chief Dara Khosrowshahi talked about
the possibility of starting a drone-based food delivery service by
2021. Uber might beat that timeline if all goes well, though: it's
planning to start drone deliveries in San Diego, where is has already
made a few test deliveries in partnership with McDonald's, in the summer of 2020.
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