Starship Technologies is a European technology company with headquarters in Estonia, London and Redwood City which has built the first commercially available autonomous, environmentally friendly delivery robots to revolutionize the local delivery industry.
Their robots are lightweight and low-cost, enabling the company to bring the current cost of delivery down by up to 15 times per shipment. The robots drive autonomously most of the time but are monitored by human remote controllers who can take over the control at any time.
Starship Technologies was founded with the intention to improve the automotive supply chain sector. Starship’s autonomous delivery robots are designed to deliver goods locally in 15-30 minutes within a 2-3 mile radius, for under £1/$1.
Last mile delivery is the largest bottleneck in the delivery industry, especially local deliveries such as groceries and food.
When you factor in the need for a van to locate the delivery address, navigate residential streets, park, walk to the property – only to find the recipient isn’t home, and the entire process has to begin all over again – other forms of delivery are largely inefficient. By removing this process, the company provides a new lease of life to retailers, brands and logistics firms who can increase supply chain efficiencies and reduce costs.
Furthermore, with road traffic and congestion increasing globally from the boom in e-commerce, Starship deliveries make the last mile delivery of goods more environmentally friendly. The UK economy will see the largest overall increase in the annual cost of congestion, rising 63%, followed by the US with a 50% increase.
The cost of congestion is calculated from direct costs, such as the value of fuel and the time spent in gridlock rather than being productive at home or work. The introduction of delivery robots aims to address this concern by decreasing the number of on-road delivery vehicles.
Starship created a fleet of electrically-powered robots that emit zero C02 and help to reduce traffic congestion by up to a third. Robotic delivery is a clear solution, affordable, convenient and environmentally friendly.
Launched by two Skype co-founders, Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis, Starship Technologies’ aim is to fundamentally reshape how goods are shipped and delivered, and make local delivery, almost free. Former Skype co-founder Ahti Heinla serves as the company’s CEO and CTO, and a serial tech entrepreneur Allan Martinson is Chief Operating Officer.