Cincinnati-based Kroger (NYSE: KR), the nation’s largest operator of traditional supermarkets, started the pilot program for driverless home delivery today in the Phoenix suburb of Scottsdale, Ariz.
Kroger teamed with Silicon Valley-based Nuro, which developed the world’s first driverless delivery vehicle, to offer the service. Kroger and Nuro announced their partnership on June 28, the day of Kroger’s annual shareholders meeting. The companies displayed a prototype driverless vehicle at the meeting.
I reported last month that Kroger would launch the service in the Phoenix area. Nuro was advertising for employees in Phoenix to build its delivery service “in the first city with our first partners.”
The pilot program is available now at one location of Kroger-owned Fry’s Food Stores in Scottsdale. Customers within two miles of the store can place their order online or on the Fry’s mobile app. Orders can be scheduled for delivery the same day or the next day using Nuro’s fleet of vehicles.