S.Korean convenience store chain CU pilots delivery robot

BGF Retail, a franchiser that operates convenience store chain CU, is currently testing delivery robots developed by Mobinn, a startup that spun off from Hyundai Motor Co., according to the company on Thursday.

In preparation for the pilot program, CU formed a last-mile delivery team with Mobinn and NICE Information & Telecommunication last year. The project, which began on April 3, is targeting an apartment complex for Hyundai Motor's employees located around 100 meters away from the CU Namyangju City store in Gyeonggi Province. Customers can place orders through the Pocket CU app or a delivery application, and the robot follows an optimized route to make the delivery.

Equipped with 3D sensors, the robot can recognize and avoid obstacles such as narrow paths and rotary slopes. Its flexible wheels enable it to move more efficiently, and it can operate 24 hours a day, even in adverse weather conditions, while maintaining the stability of fragile items such as desserts or instant coffee.

Since April 3, the robot has made over 20 successful deliveries, with an average delivery time of 11 minutes, faster than the 20-30 minutes it typically takes for human delivery riders. The successful pilot project demonstrates the potential for using robots for short-distance deliveries in the future.

CU plans to gradually expand its robot delivery service after verifying the indoor and outdoor driving performance and obstacle-handling capabilities through this pilot project.

Write to Young Chan Song at 0full@hankyung.com