Would you like a robot to deliver your next meal? This may sound unrealistic to you. But for residents of Washington, DC, this is not a fantasy anymore. Now, people in the Logan Circle area will see robots on city sidewalks.

Coco Robotics is a California-based company. They are launching their service with Uber Eats and DoorDash. CEO and co-founder Zach Rash said that this is an ideal place to start the robot operations because there are many restaurants and people live nearby them. The daily volume of food delivery orders is also very high. So it is the ideal spot to serve the customers.

Once the robot is done with the mapping, it will start delivering orders in the Logan Circle area. More neighborhoods will be covered in the future.

Customers living inside the service zone will be able to choose the robot delivery option. But for that, they must be using the Uber Eats and DoorDash apps. Once a robot reaches the delivery destination, the customers can unlock the lid and collect their order. Restaurants will have the option of whether they want human drivers or robots.

The company said that this service will also have a few benefits. Since robots will carry only one order at a time, there won’t be any extra stops. Deliveries will go directly to customers. Customers will also not need to leave tips as they normally do for human drivers.

Robots are equipped with certain other features. To ensure safety, robots are designed in a way to slow down and give the right of way to pedestrians. During their first days of operation, the robots will be collecting data about routes so they can avoid busy sidewalks if possible. Not only that, but Coco Robotics has also partnered with BlindSquare. This is a navigation app for blind people. The purpose is to share and improve data about obstacles and accessibility.

Coco Robotics is expanding its self-driving technology services. But on the other hand, a lot of discussion is going on among labor groups. They are worried that the jobs of many people will be at stake. The company has, however, clarified that they are only targeting the orders that need to be delivered to short-distance areas. These are the orders that drivers find less beneficial because they earn less money.

Likewise, the company said that its efforts will bring in more local jobs. Employees will be hired to perform the maintenance work of robots, like cleaning, charging, transportation, and other repair work. They will also be given technical training and move to higher positions once the business expands and grows.

Restaurant industry representatives have welcomed the new delivery option, saying it could help businesses serve more customers through reliable, traffic-free deliveries while allowing restaurant staff to stay focused on preparing meals.