Grubhub has announced an expansion of its partnership with Avride to introduce a pilot program using autonomous delivery robots for customers ordering from Wonder’s Jersey City location. This marks the first time Grubhub is offering robot deliveries outside college campuses, and also the first instance of Wonder providing robotic delivery to its customers.
During the pilot, orders placed through Grubhub from Wonder’s Jersey City storefront will give eligible customers within a certain range the option to select Avride robot delivery. Wonder operates a multi-restaurant model, allowing diners to choose from over 20 restaurant concepts such as Alanza, Tejas Barbecue, and Streetbird by Marcus Samuelsson. Each dish is prepared in-store and delivered quickly at no additional charge.
Following this trial run, Grubhub intends to use insights gained to expand autonomous delivery services into more markets across the United States. The company states that this move supports its aim of improving speed and reliability for all customers.
“This pilot represents the next step in our mission to provide diners with fast, reliable, and delightful delivery experiences,” said PJ Poykayil, SVP of Customer Delivery Operations at Wonder and Grubhub.“By combining Grubhub’s marketplace, Wonder’s culinary innovation, and Avride’s advanced robotics, we’re delivering the future of convenience.”
The pilot utilizes Avride’s latest robots equipped with AI-driven navigation technology designed for urban environments and varied weather conditions. The robots feature four-wheel chassis capable of quick turns and high maneuverability for efficient deliveries on busy sidewalks.
“We’re proud to be Grubhub’s trusted partner as they bring robot delivery beyond campuses for the very first time. For Avride, this marks an important step in expanding robotic delivery. Going beyond traditional restaurant or grocery delivery, it highlights how seamlessly our technology can integrate with innovative platforms like Wonder’s, opening up new business verticals for autonomous delivery,” said Dmitry Polishchuk, CEO Avride.
Grubhub and Avride have previously worked together on U.S. college campuses over the past year. Their collaboration includes more than 100,000 completed robot deliveries at locations such as The Ohio State University where over 120 robots deliver meals daily—the largest single-site robot food delivery operation in the country.
Grubhub is part of Wonder Group and operates a large U.S.-based online ordering platform featuring more than 415,000 merchants across over 4,000 cities.
Avride is an Austin-based startup focused on developing both autonomous cars and robots since 2017. Its technologies are used in various settings domestically and internationally.
