The Hyundai-owned company announced its first commercial customer, DHL, one of the world’s largest logistics companies, with which it signed a $15 million deal to bring the robot to its North American facilities.
Although no specific details have been given about the number of robots to be purchased, Boston Dynamics says it will bring a “fleet” of robots to DHL fulfillment centers over the next three years.
“Stretch is the newest robot from Boston Dynamics, designed specifically to solve the challenges within the warehouse space. We are delighted to be working with DHL Supply Chain to offer a fleet of robots that will further automate warehousing and enhance the safety of your associates. We believe that Strech can have a measurable impact on DHL’s business operations and we are excited to see the robot in action at scale,” Boston CEO Robert Playter said in a press release.
Stretch will be able to work unloading trucks, a feature that its creators have highlighted as a key part of its initial release, but they add that later it will be able to do other tasks in the operation centers.
For DHL, this collaboration is ideal because it will be able to compete with companies like Amazon, where last-mile delivery has become more automated.