The Blubber

Amazon is reportedly working on artificial intelligence software designed to power humanoid robots capable of acting as delivery workers—potentially even leaping out of its vans to drop off packages.

According to a report by The Information, the $2 trillion tech giant is developing a dedicated “humanoid park” in the U.S. where it’s testing these robots. The company is said to be focusing on building the software brain for the robots, while relying on external partners to supply the physical hardware.

The report describes an indoor testing space at an Amazon facility in San Francisco, roughly the size of a coffee shop, where the robots navigate obstacle courses. Amazon reportedly hopes that these robots could ride along in its Rivian delivery vans and autonomously carry out deliveries—possibly serving a second address while a human driver handles another.

Even if a human remains in the vehicle, a robot could boost efficiency by tackling deliveries in parallel. Amazon already has a stake in autonomous transport via its self-driving unit, Zoox.

Amazon has more than 20,000 Rivian vans in the U.S., and the report says one of these vehicles has been stationed inside the humanoid test zone. The plan is to move from simulations to real-world “field trips,” where robots will attempt to deliver packages to homes.

The company has already begun deploying humanoid robots in its warehouses, including Agility Robotics’ “Digit” robots. Agility’s CEO Peggy Johnson told The Guardian last year that Digit allows human workers to delegate physical tasks and take on roles managing the robots instead.

Meanwhile, Amazon has also received regulatory approval in the UK to test drone deliveries beyond a human operator’s line of sight—another step in its broader push toward automated last-mile logistics.

Professor Subramanian Ramamoorthy, chair of robot learning and autonomy at the University of Edinburgh, said Amazon’s robotics division is highly respected, and its reported focus on last-mile delivery makes sense given recent developments. He noted that while the necessary humanoid hardware is starting to emerge, the real challenge lies in achieving consistent performance outside controlled environments like the so-called humanoid park.