Technology
DoorDash drone deliveries are first coming to northern California with Chipotle and Popeyes on board
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DoorDash drone deliveries are first coming to northern California with Chipotle and Popeyes on board You can now text your DoorDash orders instead of using the app or website. DoorDash has revealed more details about its drone delivery program. Chipotle and Popeyes are among the first restaurant partners to sign up for DoorDash Air, which will initially be available in northern California.
DoorDash drone deliveries are first coming to northern California with Chipotle and Popeyes on board
You can now text your DoorDash orders instead of using the app or website.
DoorDash has revealed more details about its drone delivery program. Chipotle and Popeyes are among the first restaurant partners to sign up for DoorDash Air, which will initially be available in northern California.
The company also offered up more details about its drone, which has six propellers and is said to have a similar cruising noise to that of a passing car when it's at delivery height. It designed the drone to "fit the communities we'll operate in."
DoorDash noted around 80 percent of restaurant orders that are available to order through the platform are small and light enough for drone delivery. The company added that, based on estimates from initial tests, "we've seen delivery times from the restaurant to the consumer's door in under five minutes on average." Its delivery management system will look at factors like ground traffic, weather and flight times to figure out which orders make the most sense to transport by air.
DoorDash made a host of other announcements at its Dash Forward event. It's letting users text their deliveries via the Messages app on Apple devices rather than having to go through its own app or website. It said that feature expands on its Ask DoorDash assistant. It'll be available in the US at first and you can join the waitlist. Businesses, meanwhile, will be able to connect DoorDash to apps and AI agents they use internally to order team lunches and restock items as needed.
On top of that, a bunch more retailers have partnered with DoorDash to offer clothes, footwear and beauty items for delivery. Macy's, Anthropologie, The North Face, Vans and Timberland are all joining the DoorDash Marketplace. You'll also be able to use the platform to send back items, though there's a flat $8 fee for the Dasher Returns service.