GM’s Cruise partners with DoorDash to test autonomous food delivery in select cities

Cruise Automation, a subsidiary of General Motors and a developer of driverless vehicles, is teaming up with DoorDash to test a food delivery service in San Francisco using autonomous vehicles. Cruise’s self-driving fleet will launch food delivery with DoorDash in early 2019 in San Francisco, according to a joint announcement by both companies. DoorDash is no stranger to autonomous food delivery. Last year, it launched a new pilot delivery service that uses Marble’s autonomous robots.

“Delivery is a significant opportunity for Cruise as we prepare to commercialize our autonomous vehicle technology and transform transportation,” said Cruise CEO Dan Ammann. “Partnering with DoorDash will provide us with critical learnings as we further our mission to deliver technology that makes people’s lives better and more convenient.”

The announcement came just two days after GM president Dan Ammann formally assumed his new role as CEO of Cruise, replacing founder Kyle Vogt, who is now president and chief technology officer of Cruise. Cruise was founded in 2013 by Kyle Vogt and Dan Kan. The company is a developer of driverless vehicles and autopilot system for existing cars. Cruise is developing autonomous technology capable of handling challenging aspects of city driving. Its fleet of Chevrolet Bolt EVs is deployed on busy San Francisco streets testing the future of mobility.

DoorDash, the fastest growing player in the dynamic last mile delivery space, will use Cruise autonomous vehicles to test and improve the efficiency of getting food and groceries from DoorDash’s merchants to its customers’ doors. Commenting on the partnership, DoorDash said: “As part of the program, select DoorDash customers will receive deliveries from their favorite restaurants via a Cruise autonomous vehicle. In addition to ready-made restaurant meals, the partnership will also explore grocery fulfillment via Cruise vehicles for select grocers already partnered with DoorDash. DoorDash and Cruise expect to evaluate and develop safety, operational, and other learnings in the pilot.”

DoorDash is a technology company that connects customers with their favorite local and national businesses in 3,000 cities across the United States and Canada. Founded in the summer of 2013, DoorDash empowers merchants to grow their businesses by offering on-demand delivery, data-driven insights, and better in-store efficiency, providing delightful experiences from door to door.

“We are excited to partner with Cruise to develop our expertise in the autonomous vehicle delivery space,” said Tony Xu, CEO of DoorDash. “We see autonomous vehicles playing a major role in the future of delivery as consumer behaviors continue to shift online, and we are confident Cruise’s leading technology will help us scale to meet growing consumer demand.”

Cruise, a global leader in autonomous vehicle technology and DoorDash, the fastest growing delivery platform, will leverage their complementary capabilities and innovative technology to capture essential insights as the companies reimagine mobility and logistics. The pilot will commence in “early 2019,” the companies said, but it will only be available in the section of the city where Cruise has been testing its vehicles.