Autonomous Robots Will Be Delivering Food In London, Packages In Germany

If they come bearing hot French fries and gooey pizza, I, for one, will welcome our new robot overlords with open arms. The artificial intelligence revolution is one step closer to that reality in Europe, where a food delivery service, a package delivery company, and a retail chain are testing out autonomous robot couriers. Food delivery companies Just Eat and Pronto will be trying out the self-driving robots in London, while Germain retail chain Metro AG and German parcel delivery company Hermes will test them out in Dusseldorf, Germany, and Bern, Switzlerland, as well as another undisclosed German city, says the robot's maker, Starship Technologies. Starship Technologies, a London-based company started by two Skype co-founders, has been testing the so-called "ground drones" in Europe over the last nine months, but these trials will mark the first time businesses will be using the technology to deliver real orders to paying customers, Allan Martinson, Starship's chief operating officer tells Bloomberg. Each company's trial will involve anywhere between five and 10 robots in one or two areas of each city.