Grab Singapore will pilot a robot runner service to save delivery time for orders from restaurants within shopping malls.

The service will be trialed at Paya Lebar Quarter Mall from next month, where robot runners will help to consolidate orders across several merchants within the mall before handing them off to delivery partners at a central collection point for last-mile delivery.

The initiative is expected to save about 15 minutes of navigating and collecting per order.

“With a central location for Grab riders to pick up orders and the use of technology to manage logistics workflow, we will be able to minimise people-to-people contact and do our part to safeguard the well-being of riders, tenants, and customers,” Audrey Balakrishnan, GM at Paya Lebar Quarter.

Grab launched a mix-and-match feature across several malls last year, where customers can order from different merchants at the same time. However, due to the increase in orders, delivery partners have found themselves requiring more time to manoeuvre their way through the crowd to locate multiple restaurants within the mall.

The robot runner service idea was created in hope to tackle the issue and improve the delivery experience.

Grab’s robot runner service will be in the trial phase for a month before being implemented in other locations.

“As a tech platform that serves consumers, merchants, and delivery riders, we are continually seeking innovative solutions that can improve the overall delivery experience for all parties,” said Yee Wee Tang, MD, Grab Singapore.

“It is a fine balance to achieve and we believe that advanced technologies such as AI can help us do this well.”