Uber will (once again) test delivering food by drone this year

Uber Eats is testing out drone deliveries yet again, this time in partnership with Flytrex. To note, Flytrex is one of the drone operators behind Walmart’s drone deliveries and already delivers food in some parts of the US. It’s one of the four providers that received authorization by the FAA for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations, in which pilots can’t see the aircraft they’re controlling directly. The partnership, the companies said, will enable Uber Eats customers to receive orders within minutes while reducing road congestion. They’re planning to launch their drone delivery service for pilot markets in the US by the end of the year.

As part of their partnership, Uber is also making an investment in Flytrex, giving it the resources needed to be able to accelerate the deployment of its drone technology in the US. “Autonomous technology is transforming mobility and delivery faster than ever before” said Sarfraz Maredia, the President of Autonomous Mobility and Delivery at Uber. “With Flytrex, we’re entering the next chapter — bringing the speed and sustainability of drone delivery to the Uber Eats platform, at scale, for the first time.”

It sounds like Uber is expecting this pilot testing program to have a much wider reach that its previous attempt. Way back in 2018, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi talked about the possibility of starting a drone-based food delivery service by 2021. Uber, under a product called Uber Elevate, then made a few test deliveries in partnership with McDonald’s in 2020, but the service didn’t get a wide release. The company also unveiled its own unmanned aerial system capable of vertical take-off and landing that was designed to carry meals for two people, but it’s unclear what happened to that particular project.