Amazon drone deliveries to begin ‘in months’

Fully electric drones can fly up to 15 miles and deliver goods like books and toothpaste within 30 minutes

The new Amazon delivery drone is displayed on a screen during a conference on robotics and artificial intelligence in Las Vegas, Nevada, on 5 June, 2019 (AFP)

Amazon will launch self-piloted drones capable of delivering packages to customers in 30 minutes or less in the coming months.

The online retail giant made the announcement at the firm’s re:MARS conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday.

However, it did not give an exact date for when services would begin or say where the drones will be making deliveries.

Amazon said its new drones use computer vision and machine learning to detect and avoid people or obstacles such as clotheslines when landing.

“From paragliders to power lines to a corgi in the backyard, the brain of the drone has safety covered,” said Jeff Wilke, who oversees Amazon’s retail business.

Mr Wilke said the drones are fully electric, can fly up to 15 miles (24km), deliver in 30 minutes and carry goods that weigh up to 5lb (2.3kg), like a paperback book or toothpaste.

Amazon has been working on drone delivery for years. Back in December 2013, Amazon CEO and founder Jeff Bezos told 60 Minutes that drones would be flying to customer’s homes within five years. But that deadline passed due to regulatory hurdles.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which regulates commercial use of drones in the US, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday. In April, a subsidiary of search giant Google won approval from the FAA to make drone deliveries in parts of Virginia.

Mr Wilke said that the company is working with several regulatory agencies to get approval.

“We expect to do it within months,” he said

At the conference, Amazon also formally introduced “StyleSnap”, a feature on its smartphone app that lets shoppers upload a picture of an outfit they like and get recommendations for similar items to buy. The feature launched in April, Mr Wilke said, noting that shoppers had struggled to find styles that they could not describe in words.

When providing recommendations, StyleSnap considers factors such as the brand, price range and customer reviews, the company said in a blog post.

Other announcements included a new warehouse sorting system already live in Denver, Colorado that relies on small robotic vehicles topped with miniature conveyor belts that take packages to the correct chutes for delivery. These, and another robot Amazon unveiled, are updates to the Kiva “drive units” the company acquired years ago.

Updates were also announced for Amazon’s Echo range of smart speakers.

Additional reporting by agencies