Meet Ford's new robot that can deliver packages straight to your doorstep
While the shipping war between Amazon and Walmart continues to heat up as both retailers race to become the leader on next-day deliveries, auto giant Ford announces a new robot that could potentially help them meet their goals faster.
On Tuesday, Ford released images of Digit, a two-legged robot designed and built by Agility Robotics, that can walk up stairs and deliver packages via a self-driving car straight to consumers' doorsteps.
Dr. Ken Washington, Ford's vice president of research and advanced engineering, said Digit not only looks like a human but walks like one, too.
"Built out of lightweight material and capable of lifting packages that weigh up to 40 pounds, Digit can go up and down stairs, walk naturally through uneven terrain, and even react to things like being bumped without losing its balance and falling over," Washington wrote in an op-ed on Medium.
Washington adds that Digit has been designed to tightly fold itself up for easy storage in the back of a self-driving vehicle "until it's called into action."
Once the self-driving car arrives, Digit can be deployed, where it will grab a package and carry it to its final destination.
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Ford said the technology is needed because more and more people are shopping online.