DoorDash’s New Delivery Robot That Can Haul 30 Pounds Of Food At 20 MPH
If you live in Los Angeles or New York, you may have seen food delivery robots rolling up and down the streets. Whether you love or hate them, it’s looking like they’re here to stay.
In a new development, DoorDash is launching delivery robots in select cities to handle increasing customer demand, which in the second quarter of 2025, resulted in a 20% boost in revenue.
“The shift to autonomy is happening right now, and DoorDash is uniquely positioned to do something like this,” said co-founder Standley Tang. “We need to find ways to keep up with the demand. The complexity of the deliveries being made on our platform is increasing too.”
The delivery robots, called “Dot,” are bright red, 3-feet-wide, 4.5-feet-tall, and can fit up to six large pizza boxes or 30 pounds of cargo. They can also travel at speeds up to 20 MPH. Unlike current delivery bots, which stick to sidewalks, Dot is designed to traverse streets and driveways, too.
The move follows an expanded partnership between DoorDash and Kroger, in which the former will now offer delivery at all of the grocer’s U.S. locations. Users can now make restaurant reservations via the app, like OpenTable and Instacart.
Dot was developed over 7 years to compete with current delivery bots, which are limited to short runs on college campuses or sidewalks. It was optimized using in-house data and designed for longer-distance deliveries in urban areas and suburban neighborhoods.
“After 10 billion deliveries, we have data on what works, what breaks and what scales,” said Tang. In the last few months, Dot completed hundreds of deliveries in the Phoenix area, and if testing continues to progress smoothly, DoorDash plans to expand it to other cities.
Dot isn’t the only new delivery tech being tested. For several years now, DoorDash has tested drone delivery in Australia, Texas, and North Carolina.
