We got down to construct Starship in 2014 with the mission to enhance on a regular basis life by revolutionising supply.
Six years later, Covid-19 has radically elevated the significance of this mission, as we’ve moved from providing a handy service to a vital one.
This 12 months has seen demand for contactless supply develop exponentially around the globe.
Within the midst of a disaster with an enormous human price, one in every of our priorities has been to make sure that individuals who can’t go away their houses get the groceries they want, once they want them. Longer-term, we consider contactless supply will turn out to be a everlasting a part of on a regular basis life for hundreds of thousands, as individuals embrace the benefits of versatile working and companies realise the advantages of environment friendly last-mile supply.
Delivering extra issues to extra individuals
By means of the laborious work and dedication of the Starship crew, we’ve made actual progress in 2020, making our companies obtainable to new communities throughout the US and UK.
We’ve continued to broaden our work with US universities, launching on seven new campuses not too long ago: College of Mississippi, College of California, Irvine, Bowling Inexperienced College, Arizona State College, James Madison College, Oregon State College and Georgia Southern College.
In California, our robots have not too long ago been delivering to the residents of Mountain View and Modesto. Within the UK and US, we had been capable of present free meals deliveries for frontline employees, supporting the individuals who have been working heroically to maintain us protected.
Our robots have met tens of hundreds of thousands individuals and been welcomed by communities from around the globe. We’ve got been gifted thanks letters and hand drawn robotic footage and we’ve even seen Starship Halloween costumes on US faculty campuses.
We hit file supply numbers this autumn, and October noticed the best quantity of autonomous deliveries in Starship’s six-year historical past.
Trying forward
The recognition of contactless deliveries reveals no signal of stopping as individuals and companies proceed to adapt and turn out to be extra accustomed to seeing our robots in actual life.
Grocery chains will more and more depend on progressive supply alternate options, as they search to satisfy buyer demand safely and effectively. In September we introduced our first partnership with a significant US grocery chain, The Save Mart Corporations, to supply on-demand, on the spot supply of their prospects’ favorite merchandise to their door.
As college students return to school, our robots have been busy providing contactless, quick and reasonably priced supply throughout campus. The variety of autonomous deliveries has been rising, setting information week on week. We’ve got plans to broaden to many new universities in 2021.
As we transfer into this subsequent chapter, Lex Bayer is stepping down after serving as CEO of Starship from June 2018 till October 2020. Throughout his tenure, the variety of deliveries accomplished by the Firm’s autonomous robots grew from 5,000 to over 500,000, with over 1 million miles traveled. We’re happy with Starship’s development and achievements over this era and grateful for Lex’s contributions, and we want him effectively in his future endeavors.
I’ll act as interim CEO whereas we seek for the most effective particular person to guide the corporate into the longer term. Since co-founding Starship with Janus Friis in 2014, I’ve been so proud to play a component within the realisation of our imaginative and prescient, together with as CEO for nearly 4 years and most not too long ago as CTO.
In early 2021 we anticipate to make our one millionth autonomous supply. We’ve got come this far because of our progressive and world-leading fleet of robots however — extra importantly — the incredible crew of people that’ve made our firm what it’s at present. I can’t watch for us to share extra information about our Starship journey quickly.