An Amazon employee delivers an Amazon package on October 24, 2024 in San Francisco.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Amazon has acquired Rivr, a Swiss robotics company that develops machines for “doorstep delivery,” the company confirmed Thursday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Amazon quietly acquired the company earlier this week, but did not make the deal public. The company announced the deal in a notice sent to third-party delivery contractors.
“We would like to share that we recently acquired RIVR, a company focused on technology that supports doorstep delivery,” Amazon said in a notice seen by CNBC. “We believe this technology, in collaboration with our customers (delivery workers), has the potential to further improve safety and the overall customer experience, especially during the final stages of the delivery process.”
An Amazon spokesperson told CNBC in a statement that the acquisition reflects the company’s “continued investment in research” and commitment to improving the safety of its delivery workers.
The Information first reported on the deal.
The company relies on a network of thousands of third-party contractors who deliver packages exclusively for Amazon. These contractors are responsible for the so-called last-mile portion of delivery, the process of getting packages from Amazon’s warehouses to customers’ doorsteps.
For more than a decade, Amazon has invested in automating more aspects of its warehouse operations. Amazon Robotics, the division dedicated to these efforts, was formed in 2012 after the company acquired Kiva Systems, a maker of warehouse robots, for $775 million.
Last October, the company announced it had deployed more than 1 million robots across its operational network.
Amazon said in a notice to owners of its delivery service partners that Rivr’s technology, which includes wheeled quadruped robots, will allow it to research and test how the devices can be incorporated into delivery operations, such as “assisting carriers move packages from delivery vehicles to customers’ doorsteps.”
“We are in the early stages of this work, but as we progress, we will work with you and our team to help field test this technology, glean real-world insights, and incorporate your feedback into how we scale this technology in the future,” the company wrote.
Amazon previously invested in Rivr through its $1 billion Industrial Innovation Fund, set up in 2022 to support warehouse and logistics technology. Bezos Expeditions, the venture capital firm founded by Amazon founder and executive chairman Jeff Bezos, also participated in River’s $22 million seed round last March. Rivr was previously known as Swissmiles.
The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Bezos is in early talks to raise $100 billion for a fund that will buy manufacturing companies in areas such as chipmaking, defense and aerospace, and use AI to accelerate automation.
