CINCINNATI – Earlier this summer, Kroger announced a partnership with Nuro, maker of the world’s first driverless delivery vehicle.
Now, all systems are go. Kroger said on Aug. 16 that its self-driving grocery delivery pilot will begin in Scottsdale, Arizona. Customers can begin placing delivery orders immediately at the Fry’s Food Stores location on McDowell Road in Scottsdale, either through the store's mobile app or website. Orders can be scheduled for same-day or next day delivery, both of which carry a $5.95 flat fee with no minimum order.
“We’re excited to launch our autonomous vehicle delivery pilot with Fry’s in Scottsdale,” said Yael Cosset, chief digital officer at Kroger. “Kroger wants to bring more customers the convenience of affordable grocery delivery, and our pilot with Nuro will help us test and learn to understand customer acceptance of autonomous vehicles in our seamless offering. We thank Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane, and the Scottsdale community for being terrific partners and for supporting customer-focused innovation.”
Nuro will begin the pilot using its self-driving Toyota Prius fleet and will introduce its custom R1 driverless vehicle this fall.