Autonomous sidewalk delivery startup Serve Robotics Inc. has unveiled its third-generation delivery robot boasting significantly enhanced capabilities achieved at substantially reduced manufacturing cost. The robot has entered manufacturing, and 2000 new units are on track to be deployed in 2025 on the Uber Eats platform in multiple U.S. markets.

The third generation is designed to carry more goods, enable more deliveries, and further reduce the cost of delivery. It can move roughly twice as fast, travel about twice as far on a charge, and spend 6 more hours in the field each day.

Its intelligence and autonomy are significantly advanced by the addition of Nvidia‘s Jetson Orin module with five times more onboard computing power, Ouster‘s new REV7 digital lidar, and major upgrades to the sensor suite. The advancements enable the robot to deploy Serve’s newest and most powerful AI model architecture, embed new AI capabilities, and execute autonomous navigation decisions faster.

“Producing a cutting-edge robot that can drive faster and further while running five times more AI and slashing costs by half is a true engineering feat,” said Dr. Ali Kashani, CEO and Co-founder of Serve Robotics. “I am proud of what our team has accomplished with our third-generation robot, which represents the culmination of years of relentless effort. Our new robot puts Serve significantly down the cost curve and ahead of the competition as we roll out one of the largest autonomous fleets in the country in the coming months.”

Serve Robotics develops AI-powered, low-emissions sidewalk delivery robots to make delivery sustainable and economical. Spun off from Uber in 2021 as an independent company, the company has completed tens of thousands of deliveries for enterprise partners such as Uber Eats and 7-Eleven. Serve says it has scalable multi-year contracts, including a signed agreement to deploy up to 2000 delivery robots on the Uber Eats platform across multiple U.S. markets.

The new robot has an expanded cargo bin that holds four large 16-in pizzas—or 15% more volume than the previous robots. A new suspension enables the robot to drive smoother and faster while protecting food quality. Improved water resistance expands the robots’ ability to operate in a wider range of weather conditions.

Hardware and software enhancements combine to extend Serve’s commitment to safety on the sidewalk. In addition to fail-safe mechanical braking and autonomous collision avoidance, the third-generation robots introduce enhanced emergency braking, stopping 40% more quickly.

“We are excited to have begun mass manufacturing of our third-generation robot in collaboration with Magna International,” said Euan Abraham, Chief Hardware & Manufacturing Officer of Serve Robotics. “By utilizing a global supply chain and final assembly in North America, we have ensured exceptional quality and performance. Our rigorous engineering, validation, and testing processes have confirmed that this is the most rugged and high-performing robot we’ve ever created. Our cutting-edge robots will wheel into new cities and neighborhoods in 2025 and we can’t wait for users to experience their delivery capabilities first-hand.”

In the coming months, Serve will deploy its newest robots across Los Angeles and in one new unnamed metro market.

Earlier this month, the company announced a pilot partnership with Wing LLC to expand eco-friendly, autonomous food delivery that it says will redefine last-mile delivery. A unit of Google’s parent company Alphabet, Wing offers delivery with a fleet of lightweight, highly automated drones that can transport small packages directly from businesses to homes and between healthcare providers in minutes. The company putsches its delivery as safe, sustainable, and easy to integrate into existing delivery and logistics networks.

In the coming months, select Wing deliveries will be picked up by Serve delivery robots from a restaurant’s curbside and delivered to a Wing drone AutoLoader a few blocks away for aerial delivery to customers as much as 6 mi (9.6 km) away.

The robot-to-drone delivery will enable merchants to tap into delivery without any changes to their facilities or workflow and significantly extend the delivery area for sidewalk delivery robots. This collaboration represents an important step towards enabling high automation as the preferred mode of delivery for the millions of small packages every day around the world.

“We’re excited to partner with Wing to offer a multi-modal delivery experience that expands our market from roughly half of all food deliveries that are within 2 miles of a restaurant to offering 30-minute autonomous delivery across an entire city,” said Kashani. “Our end-to-end robotic delivery solution will be the most efficient mode for the significant majority of deliveries.”

Serve and Wing share an ambitious vision for reliable and affordable robotic delivery at scale.

“At Wing, we have been delivering food and other goods directly to consumers for over five years, completing more than 400,000 commercial deliveries across three continents,” said Adam Woodworth, CEO at Wing. “Both Wing and Serve offer innovative solutions that are changing the way goods are delivered. Through this pilot partnership, Wing hopes to reach more merchants in highly congested areas while supporting Serve as it works to expand its delivery radius.”

The partners say that robot-to-drone delivery offers benefits to both merchants and customers with fast, cost-efficient, environmentally conscious, safe, and convenient service.

Wing drones fly above the gridlock and Serve robots operate exclusively on sidewalks, so deliveries avoid being snarled in street traffic. Drones and robots both lower delivery costs for the operator and consumer with no need for tipping.

Both fully electric, their vehicles reduce emissions associated with food delivery, as well as reducing traffic and congestion.

By keeping vehicles off the roads, the partners help to cut down on traffic accidents. Curbside robotic package pickup allows merchants to access drone delivery without modifying their facilities or installing new equipment.