Autonomous Delivery Robots to Hit Redwood City, Calif., Streets in December

Various reports have surfaced in the past year about unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) delivering packages and take-out to your door -- but some options are closer to the ground, literally. And one Silicon Valley city is jumping to test out this new technology, considered the newest frontier in automated delivery. Redwood City, Calif., recently passed a city resolution (PDF) for a nine-month pilot program in which Starship Technologies works with parcel delivery, grocery and food delivery firms who will use its autonomous robots to carry out the deliveries. As a demonstration for the city, the robot delivered a box of cookies from a local bakery. The company has run pilot programs in London; Düsseldorf, Germany; Bern, Switzerland; and Washington, D.C.