Waymo Reenters Autonomous Delivery Market in Phoenix
Waymo, the Alphabet-owned autonomous vehicle company, is expanding its business model beyond robotaxis by reentering the delivery sector. The company has announced a strategic, multi-year partnership with DoorDash to pilot autonomous deliveries within Phoenix, a city that has long served as a testing ground for Waymo’s technology and commercial initiatives. While Waymo is widely recognized for its self-driving taxis, it has previously experimented with delivery services through pilot programs involving UPS and Uber Eats. The company also invested heavily in self-driving truck development under its Waymo Via division before discontinuing that effort in 2023 to concentrate on passenger transport.
Key Details of the DoorDash Partnership
The collaboration will enable DoorDash customers within a 315-square-mile area of Phoenix to receive deliveries via Waymo’s autonomous Jaguar I-Pace vehicles. Initially, deliveries will be limited to items ordered from DashMart, DoorDash’s convenience, grocery, and retail stores, with plans to incorporate a broader range of local merchants over time. DoorDash Vice President of Business and Corporate Development, David Richter, emphasized that the partnership aims to provide customers with an innovative delivery experience while advancing the company’s vision for a multi-modal autonomous local commerce future.
Delivery Process and Customer Interaction
Notably, the autonomous delivery does not involve DoorDash’s own delivery bot, Dot, which is also being tested in Phoenix. Instead, orders are placed inside the trunk of a driverless Waymo vehicle. Upon arrival, customers retrieve their items directly from the vehicle’s trunk via the DoorDash app. This retrieval step represents a critical test for both companies, as it challenges conventional delivery norms by requiring customers to physically collect their orders from the vehicle. The companies aim to assess whether the novelty and efficiency of autonomous vehicle deliveries can compete with the convenience of human handoffs.
Context Within Autonomous Delivery Landscape
DoorDash has actively pursued autonomous delivery innovations, partnering with Serve Robotics for sidewalk delivery bots in Los Angeles and developing its own autonomous bot, Dot. Waymo’s renewed delivery initiative signals a strategic pivot after pausing its self-driving truck program to focus on robotaxis. Phoenix continues to serve as a focal point for testing emerging autonomous technologies, providing a real-world environment to refine and scale delivery solutions that could eventually expand to other markets.
About the Author
Kirsten Korosec is a transportation editor with over a decade of experience covering EVs, autonomous vehicles, and urban mobility innovations. She currently leads transportation coverage at TechCrunch and co-hosts the “Equity” and “The Autonocast” podcasts. Contact: kirsten.korosec@techcrunch.com | Signal: kkorosec.07
FinOracleAI — Market View
Waymo’s renewed focus on autonomous delivery through its partnership with DoorDash represents a calculated step to diversify its revenue streams while leveraging its core autonomous driving technology. Phoenix’s controlled environment provides an ideal testbed for refining operational logistics, customer interaction, and scaling potential.
- Opportunities: Expansion of autonomous delivery services offers new revenue channels and market differentiation for Waymo and DoorDash.
- Risks: Customer acceptance challenges regarding the requirement to retrieve items from the vehicle could limit adoption.
- Scalability: Success in Phoenix could pave the way for broader deployment in other metropolitan areas.
- Technology Integration: Coordination between DoorDash’s ordering platform and Waymo’s autonomous system is critical for seamless user experience.
Impact: This partnership signals a positive market development for autonomous delivery, reinforcing the viability of driverless vehicles beyond passenger transport and highlighting growing commercial interest in multi-modal last-mile logistics.
