This morning I read an amazing story that will change the way packages are delivered around the world forever. While there has been a huge focus on last mile technology lately, Cyberdyne Systems’ Skynet division is working on teleportation capabilities that will eliminate the need to wait for products to ship entirely. While still in the early stages of development, the emerging technology will instantly transport an item once it is picked at a warehouse or store to your living room. According to Dr. Myles Dyson, Chief Scientist at Cyberdyne, the technology will be live by late 2017, or “Judgement Day” as they have named the project timeline.
This will certainly be an interesting topic to watch. Click here to read the full article.
And now, on to the news.
- Flirtey makes first FAA-approved drone delivery in US urban area
- Airships may be poised for comeback
- Groupon expands OrderUp restaurant delivery service
- Driver-facing dashcam on display, being tested at fleets
- Amazon plans two-hour delivery in Berlin
- Walmart looks to woo Chinese e-commerce consumers
- Diesel prices climb again
Drone startup Flirtey said that it completed the first federally-sanctioned drone delivery in a U.S. urban area without the help of a human to manually steer it. This is not the first time Flirtey has made drone history, as last year it completed the first successful FAA-approved drone delivery in a rural area. This time around the drone took a half mile flight carrying a parcel of emergency supplies to an uninhabited house. The parcel, which was loaded into a box and tethered to the drone, was lowered to the home’s front porch by a rope. Flirtey did have a drone pilot present in case things went wrong, but human assistance was not needed. The flight path was programmed by GPS, and showed that unmanned drones could navigate power lines, trees, and other obstacles without crashing or presenting danger.
While the airship has not been seen in a favorable light since the Hindenburg, with the exception of hovering over sporting events, the blimp may be poised for a comeback. Airship makers indicate that commercial interest in the airship is driving companies to invest in the blimps. Straightline Aviation Ltd., an aviation-services company in Stourbridge, England, has signed a letter of intent to acquire 12 new Lockheed Martin hybrid airships. These airships are 280 feet long, and are able to carry 47,000 pounds of cargo. The company plans to use the massive blimps to run air operations for oil-and-gas companies, transporting their equipment and commodities to and from remote locations. The aircraft fly relatively slowly, but can remain airborne for long periods. This makes them best suited to applications where time isn’t critical. So a Zeppelin probably will not be delivering products to your door any time soon.
It seems as though everyone loves ordering food on their mobile devices these days. As a result, Groupon has expanded their OrderUp restaurant delivery service to parts of Richmond, VA. More than 40 local restaurants are now offering menu items through the OrderUp app or website. The delivery service partners with restaurants that typically do not offer delivery service and with local independent delivery drivers (who are screened by OrderUp). The delivery fee is typically $3.99, and some restaurants require a minimum order value. With the service already operating in 40 markets across the country, it shows that the “Uberization” of food delivery will continue to be a hot topic.
Dashcams are nothing new, as police, emergency vehicles, and passenger vehicles routinely use them to capture everything that happens on the road. Seeing Machines has a different approach to dashcams – they are driver facing. The company’s Guardian fatigue management system is being tested at six small and large US fleets. The system uses a small dash-mounted camera, along with small units, placed left and right of the camera, that emit infrared light, enabling the system to work in the dark and when the driver has on sunglasses. An alarm is triggered by certain movements, such as eyelids closing or the head nodding, that exceed settings determined by the fleet. The alarm consists of seat vibration and audible alerts, such as low rumbles, beeps, and a whistle. According to Seeing Machines, fleet tests have shown the system reduces fatigue incidents by 50-90%.
Amazon is preparing to launch two-hour delivery in Berlin. According to the German newspaper Welt, Amazon has ordered a site on Berlin’s Kurfuerstendamm to be repurposed as a warehouse for more than 10,000 articles from the online retailer’s assortment. This is another aggressive move by Amazon to move away from a reliance on parcel delivery services. In Germany, DHL handled the majority of Amazon’s deliveries. Deliveries are slated to begin in May and will first carried out by courier firms already operating in Berlin six days a week.
Walmart has launched a new e-commerce service in China with the goal of taking on Alibaba, Amazon, and JD.com. The company is aiming to bring “quality” overseas products to Chinese consumers. The service launched on Walmart China’s mobile app, with stores in Southern China also stocking products. These stores will also offer in-store pick-up. According to Walmart, it will sell around 200 products initially, including US brands such as Starbucks and Aveeno. Walmart says it has over 500,000 customers on its app already and, since its Chinese launch in 1996, has over 400 stores. Walmart also owns a 51% stake in Chinese online grocery store Yihaodian, which could help bring consumers to the new e-commerce service.
And finally, diesel prices have climbed for the sixth straight week. According to the Department of Energy’s weekly report, diesel prices stayed relatively flat across the United States during the week ending March 28, increasing by two-tenths of a cent. The price of a gallon of on-highway diesel is now $2.121. Prices increased in all but two regions – the Midwest and West Coast less California. The nation’s most expensive diesel can be found in California at $2.425 per gallon, followed by the Central Atlantic region at $2.292 per gallon. The cheapest fuel can be found in the Gulf Coast region at $2.001 per gallon, followed by the Midwest at $2.077 per gallon.
That’s all for this week. Enjoy the weekend, April Fool’s Day, and the song of the week, by my favorite band of all time, The Who’s Won’t Get Fooled Again.
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