You may have seen Spot doing factory work. But now you will see the robot doing package deliveries on roads. Yes, you heard it right. Boston Dynamics is testing its four-legged robot, Spot, to work alongside delivery drivers. They don’t want Spot to do all that on its own. Instead, they want it to accompany the delivery drivers and cover the distance from the van to a house’s front door. This will help reduce the physical effort and speed up the entire process.

The project testing is being done, and it is in the early testing phase. A video was shared by Boston Dynamics. Here, it can be seen in the video that a driver is unloading two packages from a delivery van and loading them on the conveyor belt of Spot. Spot then delivers the two packages to different homes carefully and finally returns to the van.

You know what the biggest challenge is? The company believes that the short distance, which they call the “last 50 feet” of a delivery, is the biggest challenge in logistics. Why, because it requires safe handling to deliver a package from a vehicle to the customer’s door. Though warehouse work has already been largely automated, the safe handling of packages still depends entirely on human workers.

Boston Dynamics says that this job, delivering packages from the van to the customer’s door, is quite expensive. Industry estimates suggest that this last-minute delivery costs more than half of the total supply chain cost. In America alone, delivery companies spend around $90 billion annually. Drivers also have to struggle, often spending hours walking and passing by hurdles like snow, gravel, or climbing stairs. This all makes the job physically more demanding.

Spot is designed considering all these things in mind. It is a bit different from wheeled robots. The four legs of Spot help it move across various types of terrain. It can climb stairs, pass by obstacles, and even walk through snow and busy sidewalks. The company thinks that all these features give Spot an edge over others. The company said that drones and other robotic delivery options all have limitations. They cannot directly access the front doors or porches of customers’ houses.

One worth noting thing is that Spot is built to help the delivery workers. It cannot do this all on its own. It can speed up the process. While the robot is out for delivery, workers can cover nearby areas. The company said that Spot can carry two medium-sized packages at once. And it can cover almost 60% of parcels inside a delivery van.

Paige Miller, Spot’s senior staff product manager, said that careful handling is another factor that needs to be addressed while delivering packages. To confirm that, we have even delivered a carton of eggs to show that even fragile items can be delivered safely.

Right now, Spot will work under the guidance of delivery workers. Once it gets enough training, it can later work on its own on the same or familiar routes. The company right now is looking for logistics partners so they can begin operations. Their plan is to take the next step, where Spot can work throughout the day with drivers.

The company said that once they are into real-world testing, it will help them improve the robot. They want to work closely with logistics companies. They hope that once they refine the Spot into a practical delivery helper, it will make deliveries faster and safer.