*By Carlo Versano*
College students too hungover to peel themselves out of bed and go to D-Hall will have a new on-demand option for quick, healthy snacks.
PepsiCo ($PEP) is spearheading an autonomous food delivery service on the campus of the University of the Pacific in Stockton, Calif., where students can now order snacks via an app that are then delivered to them via a small robotic vehicle.
The "snackbot" is a "first-of-its-kind" experiment in self-driving and robotics technology, Scott Finlow, vice president of innovation and insights at PepsiCo, told Cheddar.
The "Labrador-sized" robotic delivery vehicles are designed and built by Robby Technologies, and stocked with goods curated by Pepsi's Hello Goodness vending brand, such as Sun Chips, Pure Leaf teas, Starbucks Cold Brew and Bubly sparkling water.
Students can download the app from Apple's App Store, choose items from an in-app menu, select their location from one of 50 delivery spots on campus, and then wait for the wheeled robots to show up with their snacks. Sensors record what's taken, and the transaction is logged when the lid closes (think of the latest in minibar technology, married with a self-driving car, if that car was a cooler on wheels).
Finlow said the technology could expand to more campuses, though he wouldn't mention any by name. "Certainly we think it's a scalable idea," he said.
He said the venture sprung from a belief that today's college students are looking for healthier and more convenient snack options, and that the pilot program with the University of the Pacific will help Pepsi develop data that it can use to build out a network of snackbots. "We've got a lot to learn on this campus," Finlow said.
One of the world's largest renewable energy developers will be getting hundreds of wind turbines from General Electric spinoff GE Vernova as part of a record equipment order and long-term service deal.
Consider this your sign to pack your bags. Airbnb says Colorado Springs will be a top travel destination in 2024.
A moon landing attempt by a private US company appears doomed because of a fuel leak on the newly launched spacecraft. Astrobotic Technology managed to orient the lander toward the sun Monday so its solar panel could capture sunlight and charge its onboard battery.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has announced that 100,000 businesses have signed up for a new database that collects ownership information intended to help unmask shell company owners. Yellen says the database will send the message that “the United States is not a haven for dirty money.”
A new version of the federal student aid application known as the FAFSA is available for the 2024-2025 school year, but only on a limited basis as the U.S. Department of Education works on a redesign meant to make it easier to apply.
A steep budget deficit caused by plummeting tax revenues and escalating school voucher costs will be in focus Monday as Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs and the Republican-controlled Arizona Legislature return for a new session at the state Capitol.
The first U.S. lunar lander in more than 50 years is on its way to the moon. The private lander from Astrobotic Technology blasted off Monday from Cape Canaveral, Florida, catching a ride on United Launch Alliance's brand new rocket Vulcan.
Global prices for food commodities like grain and vegetable oil fell last year from record highs in 2022, when Russia’s war in Ukraine, drought and other factors helped worsen hunger worldwide, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization said Friday.
Wall Street is drifting higher after reports showed the job market remains solid, but key parts of the economy still don’t look like they’re overheating.
The Biden administration is docking more than $2 million in payments to student loan servicers that failed to send billing statements on time after the end of a pandemic payment freeze.
