Argo AI, an autonomous vehicle technology platform company, Ford Motor Co. and Walmart have partnered to launch an autonomous vehicle delivery service in three cities.
The service will deliver Walmart orders to customers in Austin, Texas, Miami and Washington, D.C., using Ford self-driving test vehicles equipped with the Argo AI Self-Driving System.
“Argo and Ford are aggressively preparing for large-scale autonomous vehicle operations across a broad footprint of U.S. cities,” Scott Griffith, Ford Autonomous Vehicles and Mobility Businesses CEO, said. “Pairing Walmart’s retail and e-commerce leadership with Argo and Ford’s self-driving operations across these multiple cities marks a significant step toward scaling a commercial goods delivery service that will ultimately power first-to-scale business efficiencies and enable a great consumer experience.”
Customers will be able to place orders for items online and have door-to-door autonomous delivery directly to their homes. Argo’s cloud-based infrastructure will integrate into Walmart’s online ordering platform to route orders and schedule package deliveries.
Integration testing is scheduled to begin before the end of the year. The service initially will be available only to customers within defined service areas in the three markets, but there are plans to eventually expand.
The test will be used to learn how autonomous technology can enhance customer experiences, while also optimizing logistics and operations.