Are Uber Eats robots coming to Australia?

This new tech is changing the way Uber Eats operates in one US town and they are gearing up to send it global.

Waiting at a pedestrian crossing in Austin, Texas, a large Esky on wheels rolls up beside me and stops.

With its little red flag and cute digital face, this autonomous robot joins me in waiting for the light to turn green before we can cross. It’s genuinely like a sci-fi movie.

It knows sooner than I do that it’s now safe to walk into the road, and drives away at up to 8km/h, dodging other people on its way to destinations unknown.

The Uber Eats logo on its flanks gives the game away. Austin’s living so far in the future that locals use their Uber app to order food or drinks, then this little guy rocks up at the restaurant, opens its roller door for collection, then autonomously heads to the hungry customer’s home.

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When the Avride-built robot arrives you confirm it on your phone app, hit a button on the robot and its door opens to expose its wares. It’ll carry up to 25kg in its insulated belly, has space for six pizza boxes and five 1.5 litre bottles, and an electric range of 50km.

It’s all very clever, but does the world want or really need these autonomous robot couriers? And will we soon see them in Australia?

For one, delivery robots do human delivery drivers and riders out of a job. But Uber counters that by saying it expects there’ll be growth to the robot and human side of the delivery business.

Uber Eats Avride robot. (Picture: Iain Curry)

Then there’s safety. I witnessed how these robots cleverly detected and navigated obstacles using 360-degree ultrasonic sensors, lidar and cameras. It instantly stopped when noticing a car about to turn (then recognised it had given way to the robot), and smartly swerved around me when I stood in its path.

So far, so safe.

But humans (especially kids), cyclists, dogs and more can be incredibly unpredictable. Avride says its robot can “halt immediately” if an unexpected object appears in its path, and “collisions with people and obstacles are out of the question.”

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Uber Eats Avride robot. (Picture: Iain Curry)

Uber Eats Avride robot. (Picture: Iain Curry)

Even so, on a crowded city street if you’ve not noticed the dog-sized robot, I can imagine tripping over one, especially if you’re engrossed in a smartphone.

Inclement weather and wet/snowy streets are apparently no drama, as the robot is water resistant and has reasonable traction. Its suspension can cope with six-inch obstacles.

What it perhaps couldn’t cope with is a true-blue Aussie with a few schooners in him.

The well-behaved (from what I saw) Austin residents and the city’s wide sidewalks appeared a safe space for our four-wheeled robot. Hopefully it’s similar in the eight other US cities autonomous delivery robots work, and the two cities in very law-abiding Japan.

But these robots would be more vulnerable on our streets. Our larrikin nature would see a witch’s hat over the sensor, robot tipping, or post-pub rides on its back.

Uber Eats Avride robot. (Picture: Supplied)

Uber said any attempted theft or vandalism immediately alerts a remote operator, while only the intended recipient could access the robot’s contents. No free feed if you catch one, then.

Autonomous driverless taxis also circulate Austin’s streets, hailed through the Uber app, as they do in Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Silicon Valley.

How soon could Australia follow suit?

“We’re excited globally about the potential for autonomous vehicles (AVs),” said an Uber spokesman, “but expect it will be some time still until we’re seeing AVs on the platform in Australia.

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Uber Eats Avride robot. (Picture: Supplied)

“We stand ready to consult with federal and state governments as they examine the local regulatory environment.”

In short, we need our pollies to green light self-driving cars on our streets and autonomous robots on our footpaths, and there we’re well behind America.

There’s the state of our roads to consider, legal repercussions if there’s an accident caused by an autonomous vehicle, costs involved and public acceptance (or not) of such advances.

Driverless cars and delivery services won’t be appreciated by all, especially those who lose work due to them.

But with no human to pay, these robo-taxis and delivery Eskys may become the cheaper option for we consumers. And in these cost-of-living times, that may sway things in the robot’s favour.

Originally published as Are Uber Eats robots coming to Australia?