Supermarket delivery robots could soon be hitting the streets in Dubai - helping to take the strain out of the weekly grocery shop.
Dubai Roads and Transport Authority has joined forces with FedEx to develop a fleet of robotic couriers that can bring goods to the customer's doorstep.
The hi-tech project is expected to be trialled in the near future, with Dubai Silcon Oasis primed to be the pilot neighbourhood. Though a start date is still to be confirmed.
"We have looked at this technology and we feel it will work as a good product delivery service for Dubai," said Ahmed Bahrozyan, chief executive of the public transport agency at the RTA.
"The FedEx robot is part of an initiative being done by many companies to cover the last mile of delivery by using autonomous pods that are cheaper and more convenient [than delivery vehicles]."
The automated pods will collect groceries from a transit hub and deliver them to a chosen destination.
“If you have a residential area with a small shopping mall or super market, you will be able to buy something online and have it delivered via robot,” said Mr Bahrozyan.
An agreement with FedEx was signed at the RTA’s self-driving congress under the terms of Dubai's autonomous transportation strategy.
It aims to reduce traffic and pollution in the emirate and make 25 per cent of all road trips driverless by 2030.
Although a first for the UAE, other companies elsewhere have already trialled delivery robots, such as the US.
The Amazon Scout launched earlier this year, delivers goods to homes in California and Washington from an urban distribution centre.
American company Starship Technologies has also built a fleet of robots that can bring groceries to homes in the UK and on campus at George Mason University.
The company has reported more that 50,000 successful robot deliveries so far.
The Starship Technology device moves at a pedestrian speed, can carry items within a six-kilometre radius and safely navigate around people and objects.
The cargo bay remains locked during the journey and can be opened only by the recipient with an app on their smartphone, which also tracks the progress of the robot.
Tech company Refraction AI has launched the Rev-1, a delivery pod capable of operating on roads and bike lanes.
Specific details of how Dubai's autonomous delivery service will operate were not disclosed during the conference. It was not made clear whether the service will initially be provided to villas or low-rise accommodation, or if it will cater to customers living in high floors of apartment blocks.
Another option is air delivery by drones and it is being considered to reduce traffic and pollution.
“Delivery is not just on the ground, as there is the potential for drones also,” said Mr Bahrozyan. “At the RTA we want to reduce trips made on the road to alleviate traffic."
International logistic giant UPS won government approval in the US this month to operate a "drone airline" around hospital campuses.
Drone drops will need to be certified and approved by aviation regulators, but Mr Bahrozyan said they could also be used in the UAE in the future.
“Then we will decide if there is a path towards wider implementation in Dubai,” he said.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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The years Ramadan fell in May
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
Correspondents
By Tim Murphy
(Grove Press)
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Review: Tomb Raider
Dir: Roar Uthaug
Starring: Alicia Vikander, Dominic West, Daniel Wu, Walter Goggins
two stars
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
T20 World Cup Qualifier
October 18 – November 2
Opening fixtures
Friday, October 18
ICC Academy: 10am, Scotland v Singapore, 2.10pm, Netherlands v Kenya
Zayed Cricket Stadium: 2.10pm, Hong Kong v Ireland, 7.30pm, Oman v UAE
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Darius D’Silva, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zawar Farid, Ghulam Shabber, Junaid Siddique, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Waheed Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Zahoor Khan
Players out: Mohammed Naveed, Shaiman Anwar, Qadeer Ahmed
Players in: Junaid Siddique, Darius D’Silva, Waheed Ahmed
Company%20profile
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THE%20HOLDOVERS
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
ANATOMY%20OF%20A%20FALL
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Brief scoreline
Switzerland 0
England 0
Result: England win 6-5 on penalties
Man of the Match: Trent Alexander-Arnold (England)
Without Remorse
Directed by: Stefano Sollima
Starring: Michael B Jordan
4/5
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