Updated: Feb 24, 2023
Alibaba is reportedly planning to invest $15 billion over the next five years to “build up its global-logistics infrastructure and development of robots sorting and fulfilling merchandise”, according to the Wall Street Journal. Alibaba says the money will be used to increase research and development in logistics data technology, as well as for development of smart warehousing, smart delivery and global logistics infrastructure, all of which are core to building the global logistics network of the future. Alibaba is said to be the world’s largest e-commerce company, mainly concentrating on the business-to-business sector rather than retail, but until now, it has relied on external companies to provide its logistics. Now, the company has invested an additional $801 million to buy a controlling stake in Cainiao Smart Logistics. Cainiao had been Alibaba’s main logistics affiliate and Alibaba already had a 47% stake in the company. Daniel Zhang, CEO of Alibaba Group, says: “Our goal with this investment is to provide comprehensive, first-class experience for consumers globally. Our commitment to Cainiao and additional investment in logistics demonstrate Alibaba’s commitment to building the most-efficient logistic network in China and around the world”.
Updated: Feb 24, 2023
Amazon has filed for a patent for a potential new autonomous delivery solution involving drones. The patent involves a concept for a ‘beehive’ like tower which will act as a fulfilment centre and refuelling station for delivery drones in cities. The company has filed for a patent for “multi-level fulfilment centres” that would accommodate the landing and take-off of drones in dense urban settings, the latest example of Amazon’s futuristic vision of reshaping the way people receive packages. The application filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office, which was written in 2015 and published last week, included a number of drawings of drones flying in and out of tall cylinder-shaped buildings that Amazon wants to locate in central metropolitan areas. The centres would allow Amazon to shift away from the traditional model of large single-story warehouses that temporarily store packages before they are shipped to customers. Those buildings are typically located on the outskirts of urban areas and are not convenient for deliveries into cities where populations continue to swell, the company noted. The centres could be used to fulfil hundreds of thousands of orders a day, in part relying on a large volume of drones that continually pick up deliveries and can recharge their batteries at the site. The drone centres could also have a “central command” to control flight operations, which would be similar to a flight controller at an airport according to the company.
Updated: Feb 24, 2023
In preparation for 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, electronics giant LG is trialling new robots in the country’s largest airport. Seoul’s Incheon International Airport is now home to two of LG’s latest prototype bots, the Airport Guide Robot and the Airport Cleaning Robot. The bots were first unveiled at CES earlier this year, and both do exactly what their names suggest. The Guide Robot will roam the terminals, ready to provide travellers with directions and information about boarding times.
It speaks four languages Korean, English, Chinese, and Japanese. Users can even get it to scan their boarding pass to be escorted to their correct departure gate. The Cleaning Robot, meanwhile, is essentially a beefed-up Roomba that looks a little like a mini-tank. According to LG, it “detects the areas that require the most frequent cleaning, stores those locations in its database and calculates the most efficient routes to get there.”