Uber to Test Driverless Food Delivery in 2022 in California

Uber announced Thursday (Dec. 16) that it is partnering with autonomous driving venture Motional to debut a driverless food-delivery pilot in 2022 in the U.S.

Motional is a partnership between Hyundai and Aptiv, and this pilot is the first time Uber has worked with driverless deliveries.

The program will initially be rolled out in Santa Monica, where customers can access the service by ordering from the Uber Eats app.

The news comes after Uber sold its self-driving car division to Aurora Innovation Inc., taking a stake in the startup and pulling back from its vision to make autonomous taxis.

In the release, Sarfraz Maredia, vice president and head of Uber Eats U.S. and Canada, said the new plan is just part of the company’s mission to move things forward.

“Our consumers and merchant partners have come to expect convenience, reliability and innovation from Uber, and this collaboration represents a huge opportunity to meet — and exceed — those expectations,” Maredia said.

Motional also has plans to work with Lyft to put out self-driving taxis in Las Vegas, and that project is expected to be rolled out by 2023.

PYMNTS writes that Uber is also working with CLEAR to improve the way rides to the airport are conducted, making it all more accurate. CLEAR will be integrating its “Home to Gate” free in-app feature with Uber’s software.

See also: CLEAR’s Uber Pact a Smart Chess Move With Major Growth Potential for Biometric ID

The app will help users figure out exactly when to leave for the airport and help them reserve an Uber ride ahead of time, helping make everything “seamless” and “predictable.”

CLEAR is focused on improving air travel, prequalifying travelers with biometrics instead of documents to help them skip airport security lines and wait times. With the Uber integration, there will be more of a “last-mile” addition to the process.