ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Domino’s (NYSE: DPZ), the largest pizza company in the world based on global retail sales, and Nuro, the leading self-driving delivery company, are launching autonomous pizza delivery in Houston. Beginning this week, select customers who place a prepaid order on dominos.com on certain days and times from Domino’s in Woodland Heights, located at 3209 Houston Ave., can choose to have their pizza delivered by Nuro’s R2 robot. Nuro’s R2 is the first completely autonomous, occupantless on-road delivery vehicle with a regulatory approval by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
This collaboration between Domino’s and Nuro will introduce an entirely new delivery experience to pizza lovers. Here’s how it works: select customers who place a prepaid website order from the participating Domino’s store can opt to have their order delivered by R2. Customers who are selected will receive text alerts, which will update them on R2’s location and provide them with a unique PIN to retrieve their order. Customers may also track the vehicle via GPS on their order confirmation page. Once R2 arrives, customers will be prompted to enter their PIN on the bot’s touchscreen. R2’s doors will then gently open upward, revealing the customer’s hot Domino’s order.
“We’re excited to continue innovating the delivery experience for Domino’s customers by testing autonomous delivery with Nuro in Houston,” said Dennis Maloney, Domino’s senior vice president and chief innovation officer. “There is still so much for our brand to learn about the autonomous delivery space. This program will allow us to better understand how customers respond to the deliveries, how they interact with the robot and how it affects store operations. The growing demand for great-tasting pizza creates the need for more deliveries, and we look forward to seeing how autonomous delivery can work along with Domino’s existing delivery experts to better support the customers’ needs.”
“Nuro’s mission is to better everyday life through robotics. Now, for the first time, we’re launching real world, autonomous deliveries with R2 and Domino’s,” said Dave Ferguson, Nuro co-founder and president. “We’re excited to introduce our autonomous delivery bots to a select set of Domino’s customers in Houston. We can’t wait to see what they think.”
To view Domino’s full menu or place an order, visit dominos.com.
About Domino’s Pizza®
Founded in 1960, Domino’s Pizza is the largest pizza company in the world based on retail sales. It ranks among the world’s top public restaurant brands with a global enterprise of more than 17,600 stores in over 90 markets. Domino’s had global retail sales of more than $16.1 billion in 2020, with nearly $8.3 billion in the U.S. and more than $7.8 billion internationally. In the fourth quarter of 2020, Domino’s had global retail sales of more than $5.5 billion, with over $2.7 billion in the U.S. and more than $2.8 billion internationally. Its system is comprised of independent franchise owners who accounted for 98% of Domino’s stores as of the end of the fourth quarter of 2020. Emphasis on technology innovation helped Domino’s achieve more than half of all global retail sales in 2020 from digital channels. In the U.S., Domino’s generated more than 70% of sales in 2020 via digital channels and has developed several innovative ordering platforms, including those for Google Home, Facebook Messenger, Apple Watch, Amazon Echo, Twitter and more. In 2019, Domino’s announced a partnership with Nuro to further its exploration and testing of autonomous pizza delivery. In mid-2020, Domino’s launched a new way to order contactless carryout nationwide – via Domino’s Carside Delivery™, which customers can choose when placing a prepaid online order.
About Nuro
Nuro exists to better everyday life through robotics. The company’s custom autonomous vehicles are designed to bring the things you need, from produce to prescriptions, right to your home. Nuro’s autonomous delivery can give you valuable time back and more freedom to do what you love. This convenient, eco-friendly, safe alternative to driving can make streets safer and cities more livable. Nuro has brought autonomous delivery to local communities in Texas, Arizona, and California—for less driving and more thriving.
Source: Domino’s Pizza, Inc.