The University of Kentucky has turned to Starship Technologies to deploy the company’s autonomous delivery robots on campus. The new food delivery service on the Lexington, Ken. campus makes UK one of the first institutions in the state to use the robots.
As reported by the Northern Kentucky Tribune, Starship will provide UK with a fleet of 30 autonomous delivery robots. Robot delivery will be available from seven campus dining locations including recognizable brands like Starbucks, Subway, Panda Express and Auntie Anne’s Pretzels.
To place an order for robot delivery, UK students and faculty use the Starship Food Delivery app to order both food and drinks from participating locations. Delivery can be made anywhere on campus within minutes, and participating locations and hours of service can all be viewed within the app.
Students also use the Starship app to set the delivery location for their order. After selecting their order, users drop a pin where they want their delivery to be sent. They can then watch travel across campus via the interactive map.
When the robot has reached its destination, the students is sent a push notification to meet and unlock the robot using the app.
The Starship delivery service works in conjunction with UK Dining, with credit cards, as well as the university’s Plus Account and Flex dollars all accepted by the app as forms of payment.
The University of Kentucky joins a growing roster of campuses working with Starship including Arizona State University, Purdue University, University of California, Los Angeles, George Mason University, Northern Arizona University and Bowling Green State University.
“We’re excited to bring robot delivery service to Kentucky. UK has a significant impact that extends throughout the state and beyond,” says SVP of Business Development and Sales at Starship Technologies Ryan Tuohy. “We’re confident our robots are going to be warmly accepted and that the students will love the convenience of on-demand delivery.”
