United StatesRetail and e-commerce2020 – ongoingWalmart
Store-based drone delivery network
Walmart reduced its DroneUp delivery network and ended that partnership while retaining other drone services
Problem
Walmart wanted to deliver small orders in minutes and develop a scalable last-mile service. Its work with DroneUp began with deliveries of COVID-19 test collection kits in 2020.
Approach
Walmart invested in DroneUp in 2021 and expanded store-based delivery hubs. A Tampa Bay Times report described autonomous flight software operating with human pilots and visual supervision. In August 2024, reports said DroneUp was closing 18 Walmart hubs in Arizona, Utah and Florida, while its chief executive put delivery cost at about $30 per package. By January 2025, Walmart confirmed that its DroneUp contract and investment had ended, while continuing drone delivery work with Wing and Zipline.
Results
Takeaway
The service combined autonomous flight with substantial human supervision. Expansion across multiple markets was followed by hub closures and a change of providers as delivery costs remained high.
Categories
- Size
- Large enterprise
- Industry
- Retail and e-commerce
- Business function
- Production and qualityLogistics and supply chain
- Innovation type
- Process innovationProduct and service innovation
- AI technology
- Robotics and automation
- Adoption
- Vendor solution
- Evidence
- Press reporting
Sources
Source summaries
The report relayed DroneUp's closure of 18 Walmart hubs and its chief executive's estimate of roughly $30 per delivery. It described the network reduction and Walmart's growing focus on Dallas-Fort Worth.
A Walmart spokesperson confirmed that the retailer had ended its DroneUp contract and investment. The report described the earlier network reduction and continued drone delivery efforts involving Wing and Zipline.
Walmart described its 2020 test-kit deliveries with DroneUp and its subsequent investment. It said the objective was a scalable delivery service, and an update described the start of multi-site commercial hubs in 2021.
The report described actual Walmart deliveries through DroneUp and quoted a manager explaining autonomous routing. It also documented the human pilots, ground travel and line-of-sight supervision involved in the service.
Full details are in the original sources.