Autonomous Delivery Gains Ground as Meituan Reports Nearly 2.2 Million Robot Deliveries Since 2020

This is an English adaptation of a FoodBud historical article originally published on June 9, 2022.

After Meituan released its first-quarter results, the company discussed autonomous delivery in foodservice and local commerce. Since early 2020, Meituan autonomous delivery vehicles had fulfilled nearly 2.2 million orders, including heavy use in areas affected by Covid-19 controls.

From early April to May 24, 2022, Meituan deployed autonomous delivery vehicles in affected areas of Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Beijing, completing more than 700,000 orders.

Pandemic Use Cases in China

In Shanghai, Meituan autonomous delivery vehicles supported supply delivery for Ruijin Hospital, Fudan University, fangcang shelter hospitals, and 15 residential communities including Oasis Cannes and Cannes Peninsula. The vehicles delivered daily necessities to residents, students, teachers, and medical staff, and also supported internal hospital delivery of nucleic-acid test samples and medical supplies.

During the Beijing outbreak, Meituan continued fresh produce delivery across more than 50 communities where it had regular operations in Shunyi, while also working with local communities to deliver supplies into several locked-down areas.

Meituan’s autonomous delivery vehicles also continued operating at several closed university campuses across China, supporting campus pandemic-control work and delivering hundreds of thousands of supply packages to students and faculty.

Covid-19’s high-transmission-risk environment highlighted a specific operating case for autonomous delivery. Each vehicle could carry nearly 150 kilograms per trip, reducing pressure on couriers and volunteers while lowering transmission risk.

Meituan’s Longer-Term View

Meituan described autonomous delivery as a sustainable, technology-enabled fulfillment method that can complement its instant-delivery network. Its approach includes autonomous delivery vehicles, drones, and other robotics technologies, with the aim of integrating air and ground systems for last-mile delivery.

The company said these technologies could better serve instant-delivery demand in residential communities, office parks, universities, and open-road environments.

Chain Operators Testing Similar Models in North America

FoodBud also noted that North American restaurant chains were increasingly testing autonomous delivery for off-premise orders. Brands including El Pollo Loco, Chili’s, C3, and Chick-fil-A had been testing drones and robots as ways to reduce delivery fulfillment costs.

Delivery robots had already gained a foothold on North American university campuses and were gradually expanding into non-campus environments.

Refraction and Chick-fil-A

Chick-fil-A had been testing Refraction’s autonomous delivery robot. Operator Luke Steigmeyer said Refraction’s delivery robot could help restaurant locations improve the cost-performance of delivery service within roughly one mile of a store.

In the previous fall, Chick-fil-A launched three virtual delivery-only brands. Its initial delivery operation was handled in-house, offering delivery drivers $11 per hour plus 100% of tips.

Refraction began testing its autonomous delivery technology in 2019, with a delivery radius of 3.5 miles. Its early testing focused on restaurants and later expanded to retail and grocery stores. According to Eater, Refraction’s robot could carry six packaged takeout bags and travel at 15 miles per hour.

Drone Delivery in Shenzhen

Beyond ground-based autonomous delivery, Meituan was also advancing drone delivery. In April 2022, Wei Xiaofan trialed drone meal delivery through Meituan at four Shenzhen locations: Galaxy WORLD, Pingshan Kengzi, Longgang Baolong, and Longgang Kaisa.

After a customer placed an order through Wei Xiaofan’s Meituan store, staff sorted, heated, and packed the meal, then handed it to a Meituan drone delivery worker. The drone transported the meal along a preset route to a designated smart pickup cabinet.

When the cabinet sensed the drone approaching, it opened automatically, received the delivered meal, stored it at a constant temperature, and sent the user a pickup code.

Meituan’s drone team said the company began exploring urban drone delivery in 2017, using technology innovation to reshape fulfillment tools and accelerate development of an integrated air-ground local instant-delivery network. Its stated service target was 3-kilometer delivery within 15 minutes. As of March 2022, Meituan drones had been deployed in eight Shenzhen communities and one commercial district, completing nearly 35,000 real-user orders.

Note: Meituan’s forward-looking delivery targets and deployment/order figures are historical as of the article’s 2022 publication context.