Czech delivery platform foodora is launching a pilot project in Prague to bring hot food and grocery orders to customers using autonomous robots.

The company says the move makes it the first business in the Czech Republic to roll out robot deliveries.

The project, which will initially deliver orders from McDonald’s Karlín within a radius of around two km, follows a successful operational rollout by the company in Sweden.

The project was developed in partnership with Starship Technologies, which operates a fleet of over 2,700 robots across more than 270 locations in seven countries, including the US, Finland and the UK.

The robots in the trial operate at Level 4 autonomy, meaning that they can move independently under the constant supervision of a human assistant who can intervene immediately if necessary.

If the pilot scheme in Prague is successful, the technology will be deployed in other Czech cities and regions.

Initially, foodora said three robots will be deployed in the area of Prague 8 as part of the testing phase.

Starship said its robots move mainly on pavements at walking speed and crossroads when they need to, using pedestrian crossings.

They use a combination of multiple sensors and cameras, artificial intelligence and machine learning to travel and navigate around obstacles, while computer vision helps the robots map their environment.

The technology company added that the robots are capable of operating non-stop even in challenging conditions such as rain, snow or hot summer heat.

foodora currently provides services in more than 170 cities and municipalities across the Czech Republic, covering around 70 per cent of the country’s population.

“For us, this is a major step forward in food delivery and another milestone in the development of our services,” said Adam Kloesa, managing director of foodora Czechia.

He added that the move aims to show that the country can be at the “forefront of innovation” and that private companies like foodora can bring modern technology to its citizens, improving their lives for the better.

Last month, Uber Eats announced a similar partnership with Starship Technologies to roll out autonomous delivery robots across multiple countries.

The delivery robots will be able to complete deliveries in under 30 minutes for distances of up to two miles.

Uber Eats will initially roll out robot deliveries in Leeds, with plans to expand to multiple European countries in 2026 and the US the following year.

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