More than a thousand robots are set to join the delivery personnel ranks of Chinese online retailers companies Alibaba, Meituan and JD.com (9618.HK) over the next year as the pandemic fuels demand for contactless services, reports Reuters. The firms expect to operate over 2,000 robots between them by 2022, up about four-fold from now, their executives said, encouraged also by falling costs of making robots. Millions of couriers still deliver packages for as less as RMB 3 (USD 0.46) per parcel in China, but companies have been exploring the use of drones or box-like robots on wheels from as early as 2013 amid a labour crunch that has worsened due to the pandemic. Beijing has also ordered firms to ensure rest periods for couriers as they scramble to meet rising demand and deadlines.

Human delivery personnel still outnumber robots, which have limitations such as inability to climb stairs. Also, robots are only allowed on certain routes like in housing estates and school campuses because of speed limits and road conditions. Robots also tend to be used to deliver less time-sensitive products like packages, rather than food. Delivery firms in other countries have also been testing robots including Russia-based Yandex. US-based online food-ordering company GrubHub is planning to start using driverless robots to deliver food on US college campuses.