Insider Brief
- Serve Robotics is expanding beyond food delivery through a partnership with on-demand laundry service NoScrubs, marking the company’s first commercial urban delivery deployment outside of prepared meals.
- The pilot launches this week in select Los Angeles neighborhoods and will use Serve’s existing fleet of autonomous sidewalk robots to deliver laundry orders placed through the NoScrubs app.
- Serve said the partnership allows it to increase use of its roughly 2,000 delivery robots by handling laundry orders outside peak meal delivery periods, while opening potential future opportunities in categories such as dry cleaning, retail, pharmacy and grocery delivery.
Serve Robotics is expanding beyond food delivery through a new partnership with on-demand laundry service NoScrubs with a pilot in Los Angeles.
The pilot launches this week in select neighborhoods and will use Serve’s existing fleet of autonomous sidewalk delivery robots to transport laundry orders directly to customers, according to Serve. Customers will schedule deliveries through the NoScrubs app, with orders assigned to Serve robots based on availability.
“The NoScrubs partnership is where we leverage what we’ve created to open up an entirely new category of delivery and offer more convenience to consumers,” Serve Robotics co-founder and CEO Ali Kashani said in a statement. “The same Serve robots that bring you dinner will soon bring you your laundry and more. We’re just getting started.”
NoScrubs operates its app-based laundry services in seven major U.S. metropolitan areas. Serve said the move gives it access to a new segment of local commerce while making greater use of robots already operating on city streets. Because laundry pickups and deliveries typically occur outside peak meal delivery hours, the company can increase utilization of its existing fleet without deploying additional robots.
“Customers expect fast, seamless delivery experiences across every aspect of daily life, not just meals,” added Matt O’Connor, co-founder and CEO of NoScrubs. “Partnering with Serve allows us to explore innovative ways to serve customers while improving operational efficiency.”
Los Angeles-based Serve currently operates roughly 2,000 delivery robots across the United States, including about 500 in Los Angeles. Those robots will handle NoScrubs deliveries alongside their existing food delivery operations.
The expansion builds on Serve’s January acquisition of Diligent Robotics, which extended its autonomy platform into indoor environments. The company said potential future markets include dry cleaning, retail, pharmacy and grocery delivery, according to the company.
