The company is about to begin testing Gita in a number of industrial settings, including factories and theme parks. Piaggio created Piaggio Fast Forward 18 months ago. The sensors, control systems, and electric propulsion used in the new robot could all prove crucial for future Piaggio products, says Michele Colaninno, chairman of the board of Piaggio Fast Forward. Still, as with many of the ideas being tested by transportation companies, including self-driving taxis, semi-automated trucks, and delivery drones, the underlying technology, as well as the potential applications, remain a bit unproven.

Inside an industrial building in Somerville, Massachusetts, I'm watching a robot follow someone around like an eager puppy. The light-blue robot, called Gita, is almost spherical, with two wheels about the size of those you'd find on a mountain bike. A nearby laptop shows the world as perceived by the robot: a "point-cloud" of dots representing the 3-D shape of the room and the hallway outside, generated using a series of cameras attached to the bot's body. Gita was developed by Piaggio, an Italian automotive company that makes various lightweight vehicles but is most famous for making the iconic Vespa scooter. The robot is an experimental new way of transporting stuff.