New England Diary

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And you don’t have to tip them

Front view of a Kiwibot.

— Photo by Ganbaruby

Edited from a New England Council (newenglandcouncil.com) report:

Framingham State University will deploy food-delivery robots on campus. In partnership with Kiwibot, the new service will roll out 15 robots so that students can access affordable and eco-friendly on-campus food delivery.

This new service will work with Sodexo, the current food-service provider of Framingham State. Students will be able to order food from their devices and the robot will deliver the food directly to their door. To ensure the safety of students, the app will allow them to track the robot’s location on the delivery route and open the lid to grab their food. Kiwibots use semi-autonomous driving systems with human supervisors ready to assist with immediate support. The new technology will help Framingham students reduce their carbon footprint as the robots produce zero carbon emissions.

Nancy Niemi, president of Framingham State, said, “Sodexo has been a great food service partner for the University, as they continually evolve to meet the desires of our community. The addition of Kiwibot technology is the latest advance and I know many of our students will be excited to have these mini delivery systems coming right to them, on our campus.”