Around Austin, a self-driving car soon could deliver Walmart orders
Self-driving cars could soon be delivering your orders from Walmart, as Ford Motor Company and Argo AI continue to expand autonomous vehicle activity in Austin.
Ford, Argo AI and Walmart are partnering on the delivery service, which is debuting in Austin, Miami and Washington. The service will use Ford’s selfdriving test vehicles, which are equipped with Argo AI’s selfdriving system technology.
Initial operations for the delivery service are slated to begin this year in a defined area, primarily in the South Austin area near the Walmart store on East Ben White Boulevard. Delivery availability is expected to expand over time, according to executives.
Scott Griffith, CEO of Ford’s autonomous vehicles and mobility businesses said Ford and Argo are preparing for large-scale autonomous vehicle operations across a broad footprint of U.S cities.
“Pairing Walmart’s retail and e-commerce leadership with Argo and Ford’s self-driving operations across these multiple cities marks a significant step toward scaling a commercial goods delivery service that will ultimately power first-to-scale business efficiencies and enable a great consumer experience,” Griffith said in a written statement.
Walmart has been working with autonomous vehicle partners since 2018. This latest partnership is expected to help meet the growing demand for Walmart’s consumer delivery options and enhance the retailer’s last-mile delivery process.
“This collaboration will further our mission to get products to the homes of our customers with unparalleled speed and ease, and in turn, will continue to pave the way for autonomous delivery,” Tom Ward, senior vice president of last mile delivery,
Walmart U.S., said in a written statement.
Central Texas is no stranger to Ford and Argo AI’s self-driving technology. The companies have been testing the technology in Austin since 2019, when Ford said it would deploy prototypes to make the city a proving ground for its technology.
Scaling up
Ford has about 40 employees in Austin for its self-driving business operations and testing teams and is also testing fleets in Detroit; Miami; Palo Alto, Calif.; Pittsburgh; and Washington. Argo is a Pittsburgh-based company.
In a statement, Bryan Salesky, CEO of Argo AI, said that the partnership with Walmart will help show the potential for autonomous vehicle delivery services at scale.
“Our focus on the testing and development of self-driving technology that operates in urban areas where customer demand is high really comes to life with this collaboration,” Salesky said in a statement.
The vehicles won’t be making any unmanned deliveries yet. When the cars operate autonomously, two safety operators — one behind the wheel and one in the passenger seat — will be in the vehicle. The operators will remain in the vehicles until several benchmarks are met involving the regulatory environment, safety performance data and community acceptance, Ford said.
Argo has built three-dimensional high-resolution maps of Austin’s street environment for its vehicles. They include detailed information such as lane geometry, sidewalk and bike lane locations, speed limits and landmarks.
In July, Ford and Argo AI announced a partnership with Lyft to make Austin one of the first markets to offer rideshare options using autonomous vehicles.
Starting next year, Austinarea people in select service areas who hail a ride from Lyft will be able to select an autonomous driving option. The initial rollout will be limited to fewer
than 100 vehicles between Austin and Miami, where the program is set to debut this year. The company plans to scale up to at least 1,000 autonomous vehicles on the Lyft network over the next five years across multiple markets.
‘Austin is special’
Whitney Pineda, a spokesperson for Ford, said the company sees the programs as a way to expand mobility in Austin and help meet the city’s goals related to mobility.
“Austin is special to Ford and Argo AI,” Pineda said.
Ford already has a fleet of 30 self-driving Fusions that use Argo AI technology in East Austin, the South Congress area and downtown, including near the University of Texas, and a team of about 40 employees for its self-driving business operations and testing team. Ford also has an autonomous vehicle terminal in East Austin that serves as a base for the fleet and is building a command center near Austin Bergstrom International Airport.