They may seem innocuous as they merrily roll down the street with someone’s food order safely tucked inside, but be warned — food delivery robots are not to be messed with. Two thieves recently learned that lesson the hard way in L.A.
The two men tried and failed to steal a robot owned and operated by Serve Robotics. The robot was equipped with cameras though, and recorded the whole incident. Serve shared the footage with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), and the LAPD was able to track town and arrest the suspects, who were later convicted.
For those with privacy concerns, since it appears these robots have cameras and are always filming, Serve assured 404 Media that these camera feeds are “routinely deleted, unless there are compelling safety or security concerns.” 404 Media first reported on the incident after receiving emails between Serve and the LAPD through a public records request. The outlet found in the emails that Serve appears to have offered to share footage only in cases in which its robots were vandalized.