Walmart Inc. is working with Ford Motor Co. and Argo AI to start testing an autonomous-vehicle delivery service in three U.S. cities as the big-box retailer's consumers continue to favor deliveries within the same or next day. The companies on Wednesday said the service will start in Miami, Austin, Texas, and Washington, D.C. The last-mile delivery service, or the leg of an item's journey to the ultimate destination, will take Walmart orders to customers using Ford self-driving test vehicles equipped with Argo AI's self-driving system.

Walmart isn't about to let rivals like Amazon delve further into self-driving deliveries without offering a response. As CNBC reports, the retailer has teamed up with GM's Cruise for a self-driving delivery pilot due to start early 2021 in Scottsdale, Arizona. The project will have an autonomous EV fetch your local store orders. This will save you time and money while also helping to reduce Walmart's impact on the planet, the company said. It also suggested this was particularly helpful while the COVID-19 pandemic raged on, noting that it was a truly "contact-free" delivery option. It has also forged partnerships with companies like Ford and Udelv.

DeNA Co. and Yamato Transport Co. announced Wednesday they plan to start trials on a delivery service that will utilize self-driving vehicles. The two firms aim to start testing what they envision turning into an on-demand delivery service in March 2017 in special deregulated zones designated by the government. They have yet to decide on a location. The distribution business will drastically change with the spread of self-driving vehicles, possibly creating more services, said DeNA CEO Isao Moriyasu. For example, packages could be delivered at all hours of the day given eventually there will be no need for a driver, which would also save on labor costs, he said.