Mason marks four years of robot deliveries and more than 330,000 orders
FAIRFAX, VA and SAN FRANCISCO | January 26, 2023
George Mason University (Mason) and Starship Technologies are celebrating four years of autonomous robot deliveries. In January 2019, Mason became the first college campus in the U.S. to offer autonomous food delivery through Starship. The service launched with 25 robots, which was the world’s largest fleet of delivery robots. The fleet has now grown to nearly 60 robots, serving the Fairfax Campus.
The campus community embraced the robots from the start. We wanted to take a look back at this groundbreaking service at Mason that is now in operation at more than 35 campuses across the US.
Here are some stats about Starship robots at Mason:
- Since launch, more than 335,489 orders have been completed.
- 17,334 people have placed orders – that means many people keep coming back.
- Mason loves Starship robots, but the person with the most number of orders “really” loves Starship robots, placing 659 orders!
- The robots have fueled student studies since 2019 with 39,828 coffees delivered.
- Pizza might be the quintessential college food but the most popular item for the past four years has been Steak ‘N Shake’s The Original Double ‘N Fries (ordered 13,637times!)
- If you’re at Whitetop Hall, you’re likely to spot a robot – this is the most popular delivery spot on campus.
- Breakfast became a popular meal once the robots arrived but it still can’t beat lunch, which is the most popular delivery meal of the day.
The robots have not only made an impression on campus, but they have a loyal following online too! Everybody wants a selfie with a robot but Halloween is the prime “selfie season” for these robots thanks to pumpkinbot!
Madison Bryan-Barnes, a junior Integrative Studies major at George Mason, didn’t realize the robots delivered food when she first saw them on campus. “I always thought they were really cute and was surprised at how fast they moved,” she said. “The first time I ordered Starship I was having a really hard day, and I was grateful that I didn’t have to go anywhere to get my food. I like that Mason has a way for students to have their food delivered in a timely fashion.” Noting Northern Virginia’s changeable weather, she added, “I’ve definitely used Starship when it’s been super cold or hot!”
“It’s hard to believe that we’ve already been doing deliveries at Mason for four years,” said Chris Neider, director of business development at Starship Technologies. “The campus community was excited about the technology and the cool factor from the start. We’ve taken what we learned at Mason and have incorporated those lessons across the U.S. We’re looking forward to the next four years and beyond at Mason!”
“Starship robots allowed Mason to bring an innovative, safe, and convenient dining solution to students – which was well-received by the campus community and proved to be extremely helpful during the pandemic,” said Pascal Petter, executive director, auxiliary services at Mason. “We celebrate the milestones achieved thus far and look forward to our collaborative work in the future.”
Starship Technologies operates commercially on a daily basis around the world. Its zero-emission robots have made more than 4 million autonomous deliveries, traveled millions of miles and make more than 140,000 road crossings every day.
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ABOUT STARSHIP TECHNOLOGIES:
Starship Technologies is revolutionizing deliveries with autonomous robots. The robots are designed to deliver food, groceries and packages locally in minutes. The delivery robots have traveled millions of miles and completed over 4 million autonomous deliveries around the world. Starship was founded by Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis (Skype Chief Architect and Co-founder) and Alastair Westgarth is the CEO.
Website: https://www.starship.xyz/follow / starshipdeliveries.com
MEDIA CONTACTS
Henry Harris-Burland
VP of Marketing
Starship Technologies
henry.harris-burland@starship.co
Janel Steinberg
Liberty Communications for Starship Technologies
starship@libertycomms.com
+1 415 429 5652
ABOUT GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY
George Mason University is Virginia’s largest public research university. Located near Washington, D.C., Mason enrolls nearly 40,000 students from 130 countries and all 50 states. Mason has grown rapidly over the past half-century and is recognized for its innovation and entrepreneurship, remarkable diversity and commitment to accessibility. Learn more at gmu.edu.
Contact:
John Hollis
571-396-1578
jhollis2@gmu.edu
