Since August 2025, food delivery service Just Eat has been testing the use of delivery robots in Zurich Oerlikon, in collaboration with ETH spin-off Rivr. Several Swiss media outlets, including Inside IT und Tages-Anzeiger, reported on this on August 21, 2025. For two months, a four-legged robot with wheels will be delivering orders from the restaurant Zekis World. At first, a human operator will accompany each delivery run. What happens after that remains unclear. Although the robot is frequently referred to as autonomous in media reports, it’s also said to be monitored or even remotely controlled from a central hub. This setup is reminiscent of the Segway delivery robot that’s been operating in the U.S. for years, as well as Starship Technologies’ delivery robot, which Swiss Post tested near Bern in 2016. However, those models are more conventional in designe – ssentially wheeled boxes. The sleeker and more advanced Zurich robot, by contrast, travels at 15 km/h (about 9 mph), can handle obstacles like curbs and stairs, and uses an AI system for navigation. Its delivery container is insulated and leak-proof. The trial is reportedly a European first. If successful, Just Eat plans to expand the rollout to additional cities and retail applications. According to Inside IT, Rivr CEO Marko Bjelonic views the project as an important step toward autonomous deliveries in urban environments. However, some experts advise caution, especially in areas with heavy foot and vehicle traffic. Encounters with dogs and other animals must also be taken into account – initial research on this topic has been conducted in the context of animal-machine interaction.
BY OLIVER BENDEL
