Retail giant Walmart Inc. will use Scottsdale as a testing ground for driverless deliveries, after announcing a partnership Tuesday with self-driving vehicle company Cruise Automation.
In a blog post on its website, Tom Ward, senior vice president of customer product for Walmart U.S., said that the pilot program will begin in early 2021. Customers will be able to place orders from stores, and the all-electric Cruise driverless vehicle will drop them off.
The Arkansas-based company earlier this year launched its Express Delivery, which has been expanded into more than 2,800 stores, potentially reaching more than 65% of American households.
"What’s unique about Cruise is they’re the only self-driving car company to operate an entire fleet of all-electric vehicles powered with 100% renewable energy, which supports our road to zero emissions by 2040," Ward said in the blog post. "Technology that has the potential to not only save customers time and money but also is helpful to the planet is technology we want to learn more about. You’ve seen us test drive with self-driving cars in the past, and we’re continuing to learn a lot about how they can shape the future of retail. We’re excited to add Cruise to our lineup of autonomous vehicle pilots as we continue to chart a whole new roadmap for retail."
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