Serve Robotics, the leading autonomous sidewalk delivery company is partnering with Uber Technologies, Inc. for a robotic delivery service that will be available to Uber Eats customers in Los Angeles next year.

The company has announced the closing of a $13 million expanded seed funding round with investors during the third quarter of 2021. Uber is Serve Robotics' first commercial partner.

"We are excited to partner with Serve Robotics to test a new kind of delivery in Los Angeles, that's safe, reliable and environmentally friendly," Sarfraz Maredia, VP and Head of Uber Eats in the U.S. & Canada, said in a press release. "We're always looking for ways to better serve merchants and consumers, which is why we're working with the team at Serve to explore the potential of this technology."

The new round extends previous seed funding and includes investments from Neo, Western Technology Investment, Scott Banister and others.

“Our goal is actually to take 5% off all food deliveries off the road in the next five years,” Dr. Ali Kashani, co-founder and CEO of Serve Robotics, said. “That would be equivalent to 100,000 vehicles being eliminated in the U.S. alone.”

Serve Robotics plans to use the funding to help spur its growth to a commercial scale which will include fleet expansion, geographical growth and product development.

“Serve Robotics has completed tens of thousands of deliveries in LA,” a press release stated. “Its fleet of next-generation robots will power the company’s expansion into additional geographies as it rolls out delivery service for Uber Eats and other partners in 2022.”

The California-based company began its commercial service in 2020 after success in delivering to L.A. customers in multiple neighborhoods since 2018.

Serve Robotics started in 2017 as a division of Postmates X. It became an independent company in February last year. Uber acquired Postmates X in 2020.