Rivr Launches Pilot with Veho in Austin
Rivr is rolling out a new pilot program in Austin, teaming up with Veho to tackle the final 100 yards of package delivery. Starting Tuesday, Rivr’s four-wheeled, stair-climbing robot will deliver packages directly from Veho vans to customer doorsteps. CEO Marko Bjelonic calls it "a dog on roller skates."
The pilot will use one highly supervised robot working daily for five to six hours over a couple of weeks. Bjelonic emphasizes that this step is crucial for refining automation in last-mile delivery. 
“In last-mile delivery, robotics makes an impact by actually solving these very challenging problems that are actually quite easy for humans but hard for robots. And we see [Rivr] as a differentiator, almost as the next evolutionary step from the sidewalk robots.” — Marko Bjelonic
Rivr aims to gather data to power a general physical AI framework through this partnership. Bjelonic explained the current data barrier in robotics. He pointed out that most AI relies on vast datasets, which the robotics sector lacks.
Meanwhile, Veho, which has a presence in 50 U.S. markets for major brands like Sephora and HelloFresh, sees this partnership as a way to explore how automation can boost delivery efficiency. The goal? To allow more simultaneous deliveries in dense urban settings and lighten the workload on drivers.
A Rivr employee will accompany the robot during the Austin trial to ensure safety and quality. The robot can operate autonomously, but remote support will be on standby if needed.
The pilot starts in Northwest Austin’s residential neighborhoods, with plans to expand into busier areas. Fred Cook, Veho’s co-founder and CTO, mentioned future ambitions for charging stations to keep the bots operational throughout the day.
Rivr aims to scale up to 100 bots next year and thousands by 2027. Active in the U.K. through a collaboration with delivery platform Evri, Rivr has raised over $25 million, including a Jeff Bezos-led round that valued the company at $100 million.
