AUSTIN, Texas — It won't be long before a self-driving vehicle could deliver your Walmart order in the Austin area.
Ford Motor Company, Argo AI and Walmart are collaborating to launch an autonomous delivery service in Austin, Miami and Washington, D.C.
"We're excited to expand our autonomous delivery efforts in three new markets alongside Argo and Ford,” said Tom Ward, senior vice president of last-mile delivery for Walmart. “This collaboration will further our mission to get products to the homes of our customers with unparalleled speed and ease, and in turn, will continue to pave the way for autonomous delivery."
You may have seen some of these cars on Austin roads already. The service is in its testing phase and has been since 2019. The Ford cars are equipped with Argo AI's self-driving technology and in this phase, two test specialists ride in the cars to help with the testing.
Ford said delivery service will be available to Walmart customers within defined service areas and will expand over time, with initial integration testing slated to begin later this year. The self-driving service will begin in South Austin near the Walmart on East Ben White Boulevard, according to KVUE's media partners at the Austin American-Statesman.
This isn't the only self-driving car service you can expect to see in Austin soon. Ford and Argo AI are also partnering with Lyft to bring self-driving rideshare services to Austin in 2022.
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