This holiday season, Amazon is filling its fulfillment centers with robots to help pack orders and speed up delivery times. But here's the catch: while the e-commerce giant is seeking to offer faster delivery times (see: one-day shipping for Prime members), users still have to wait at least a day to get their hands on their ordered goods.
Apparently, this may not be the case soon.
According to the company's worldwide consumer chief Jeff Wilke, in the near future, buyers who live near drone-serviced hubs may receive their orders in as fast as 30 minutes.
First Dive Into Robotics
In 2012, Amazon bought the Kiva Systems, a start-up robotics company, for a whopping $775 million. To date, more than 200,000 Kiva robots and 500,000 employees are working together in their fulfillment centers in the U.S. and across the world.
But the company's first dive into robotics did not charm users and stakeholders. For decades, industrial robots have been used in manufacturing plants to help assemble products, such as automobiles. For Nick Swinmurn, founder of Zappos, there was no way this acquisition would work. After all, the first Kiva robots were only good for sliding and moving goods.
The thing is, the Kiva Systems was the only company at that time that figured out how to use robots to expedite the e-commerce process in warehouses. Prior to the acquisition, employees had to walk up and down the aisles all day only to retrieve goods.
With barcode stickers on the floor, the robots could easily bring the shelves to manned stations without colliding with one another. The barcodes also helped in easily identifying the location of each bookshelf.
The Problem With Amazon Robot Shipping
Fast-forward to 2019, this technology now goes beyond the corners of its fulfillment centers. In line with their recent investment in a self-driving car start-up, they are now hauling goods using a self-driving truck. They are also now testing four-wheeled robots that roll on sidewalks.
But the thing that excites the public most is the development of delivery drones, a project they have been working on for the past six years. With the approval of regulating bodies, these drones could drop packages in backyards and pave the way for same-hour deliveries.
However, the company's robotics department is still encountering problems on the sidewalks, like parked cars, garbage cans, stray cats, kids' bicycles, and more. But Sean Scott, on the leader of the Amazon Scout program, gave assurance to the public during their first-ever Botapalooza.
"We're at the early days of all of this," he said. "We're just getting started in terms of the capabilities of what we can unlock."
More Robots, Less Jobs for Humans?
Over the years, Amazon has been repeatedly condemned for various issues, including their working conditions and pay. On July 15, the day of their Prime Day sale, employees staged protests all over the world against the e-commerce giant. One of the concerns raised was the pressure felt by the employees as the company introduced the one-day shipping benefit for Prime members.
One Amazon warehouse worker named William Stolz said they felt they were being treated like robots and machines, not humans. With more actual robots to help ease their working conditions, employees have another thing to worry about: will robots, drones, and automation mark the end of their employment?
In a study conducted by the McKinsey consulting group, it was estimated that by 2030, more than 375 million workers will have to update their occupational category due to automation.
To this, Wilke has something to say:
"I do worry sometimes when people equate [artificial intelligence] and robotics with job loss. If you look at these kinds of technological innovations over the years it tends to be the case they don't eliminate jobs, they tend to change jobs and change work. This is true for us."
At the moment, human employees have nothing to worry about regarding the Amazon robot shipping.
