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Bastian Lehmann

Serve - Postmate's autonomous delivery vehicle

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Today we’re introducing something that we’ve been working on for the past two years, Serve. Serve is the new addition to our fleet; an internally developed autonomous delivery rover. Serve is a first of its kind with socially aware navigation that combines design and technology.

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Ryan Hoover
Adorable. The design of this reminds me of Lyft's initial rollout with those ridiculous looking pink mustaches. Film and sci-fi often depict robots as impersonal, steel machines. This is the opposite, reminds me of the Vector robot by Anki. EDIT: Apparently I saw a beta version of this back in November and shared it on Twitter:
Kai Gradert
@rrhoover Reminds me of…
Ryan Hoover
@kaigradert haha, same!
Charles Scheuer
@rrhoover @kaigradert also looks a bit like it would deliver Snapchat's Spectacles.
Bastian Lehmann
Maker
So here it is: Serve - a small but incredibly powerful addition to the Postmates fleet. I'm excited to share Serve with everyone today after working on it for almost two years. Ask us anything.
Kai Gradert
@basti How long until you will test this in the wild? And what's the top speed?
Jon Patell
@basti I mean, is there one that collects garbage in the works?
Jon Patell
@basti (this is amazing and I love it, hope it can handle snow :D)
Alexandre Giess
@basti how do you deal with anti social behavior ( e.g. stealing what’s inside)?
Ali Kashani
Maker
@basti @alexgiess At the surface level you have a locked compartment, cameras, a screen that an operator can appear on to speak with anyone interfering, etc. At a deeper level this is about creating a design that encourages empathy and discourages bullying or vandalism.
Michael Baker
Putting people out of work
Joaquin Gonzalez
@michael_baker4 I'm guessing several engineers got jobs for this, also a couple of designers, a product manager and some data analysts.
Gino Ferrand
@woakin Because that makes up for the displaced hundreds/thousands if potential of this robot is achieved.
Ariel Verber
@michael_baker4 the personal computer did too. and then it opened up a whole new industry.
Joaquin Gonzalez
@ginoferrand1 it's a normal evolution, just like tractors or any other technological advancement. Hundreds/thousands of jobs will be created on a new industry.
William K
@woakin @ginoferrand1 The “displaced” hundreds/thousands can take advantage of the millions of courses available for free online or in libraries to become part of this new workforce. The only constant is change, learn to adapt and embrace the ever-changing world.
orliesaurus
This is cool, when and where is it launched?
Ali Kashani
Maker
@orliesaurus Rolling out over 2019, starting in LA area
Kai Gradert
@orliesaurus @ahkashani Curious, why LA?
Ali Kashani
Maker
@orliesaurus @kaigradert Lots of merchants, great demand, good sidewalks and tech-friendly.
Steven Masters
Cool stuff! How fast can it go and does it stay on pedestrian side of the road?
Ali Kashani
Maker
@steven_masters Serve moves at the speed of people around it, and stays on the sidewalk unless it's crossing at an intersection.
NiMA
Congratzzz @basti ! Whenever I see a Velodyne Puck on a robot, I know its creators are serious about actually deploying it IRL 😉
Ali Kashani
Maker
Khachatur Gharibyan
Congrats! Design is great
Zeke Howard
Love the design and looking forward to seeing it in action!
Viktorya Ashughyan
👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Viktorya Ashughyan
👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
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