![]() ![]() Google is not a retailer, and Google spinoff Wing has taken another approach. Still, for Amazon, bringing the supply closer to the customer remains a barrier for drone delivery. Over the years, Amazon has patented many different ideas to deal with these problems: airborne satellite warehouses, drone docking systems on trains, charging stations on streetlights. For Amazon, that could require an entirely new supply chain organization: new warehouses or entirely new workflows. While drones offer the opportunity for same hour delivery, they do have limitations in distance. It was only last year, in 2020, that Amazon’s PrimeAir fleet received FAA approval, however. Companies like Amazon and Google may have been forced into aircraft development simply by being such early adopters of drone technology: while they have no part in the production of other delivery methods like trucks and manned aircraft, suitable delivery drones manufactured at scale were not readily available when companies began to think ahead to the benefits of drone technology. The project has been a huge investment and has successfully garnered significant support for drone delivery: but developing aircraft is undoubtedly outside of Amazon’s core business. Throughout the process, they’ve focused on developing their own proprietary aircraft: working through multiple designs and the extensive testing required for aircraft development. Amazon was one of the first to appear at drone industry events, explaining their concept of a federated airspace model for drone regulations in 2016, and investing heavily in government lobbying from 2014. Over the course of the last few years, Amazon, Google and Walmart have emerged as the major players working towards residential drone delivery. Now, by investing in DroneUp as delivery partners, Walmart has made a move that could define what retail drone delivery looks like.Īmazon, Google, and Residential Drone Delivery ![]() They’ve partnered with Walmart on drone delivery before, delivering COVID-19 test kits by drone to residences in the dense urban environment of Las Vegas and a new Coca-Cola product in Georgia. “Because when it comes to the future of drone delivery, we know the sky’s the limit.”ĭroneUp has long been an industry leader: providing a well-trained pilot force, defining the boundaries of what can be accomplished within the limits of Part 107, and offering drone delivery as a regular part of their services. DroneUp’s expertise, combined with our retail footprint and proven history of logistics innovation, puts us right where we want to be for that day,” writes Walmart President and CEO John Furner. “Conducting drone deliveries at scale is within reach. The decision indicates a major move in the race between retailers to dominate last mile delivery. Walmart drone delivery has moved forward, as Walmart announces a significant strategic investment in drone service provider DroneUp. ![]()
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