Amazon’s tiny delivery robots, which look like mini moon rovers, will no longer deliver orders and disappear from the sidewalks of American cities. The company announced the reorientation of the Scout program and the cessation of the use of experimental technology.
Image source: Amazon
According to media reports, the Scout team will be dissolved and most of its 400 members will be offered new jobs in the company. However, an Amazon representative has already pointed out that the company is not abandoning the project entirely and will remain the “backbone” of the team, which will continue to explore the possibility of using Scout for deliveries.
Amazon says that, through limited field testing, the feedback helped determine that some aspects of the program “did not meet customer expectations”, resulting in these tests being discontinued and the program refocused and the project team they were assigned positions that matched their experience and skills.
Amazon began testing Scout in 2019 and initially used six delivery vehicles near its Seattle office. The little delivery robot could follow a predetermined path on its own, although it was accompanied by people during tests. Once he arrived at his destination, he could open the lid in the presence of the buyer, allowing him to collect the goods. Gradually, Amazon expanded the scope of testing to Southern California, Atlanta, Georgia, and the city of Franklin, Tennessee.
Although the company has never stated which aspects of the program “did not meet the needs of the users”, it is possible that it is simply a lack of funds for the pilot projects. For example, quite recently the company refused to issue Glow terminalswhich involved video communication with children, perhaps due to poor sales.
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