The services will be available under multiple partnerships including one between Careem and Kiwibot.

Social distancing has unlocked a demand for contactless services in the new normal, paving the way for robots to walk into cities as well as households, and to play a larger role in everyday life. As private vehicles are becoming equipped with smart tech, autonomous wagons are being tested for public transport, deliveries, defence and for carrying cargo at ports in the UAE.

At the recently launched Expo 2020 in Dubai, robots have stepped in as guides as well as entertainers, while autonomous vans are seen delivering food to visitors on the site, in 3D printed containers for extra safety. The innovative solution aimed at combining convenience with safety in the post-pandemic age, is now set to make life easier beyond the premises developed for Expo 2020, as robots are arriving on Dubai's streets with food and groceries.

Made possible thanks to multiple partnerships, robots for delivering meals and essentials to the doorstep in residential areas as well as college campuses, are being deployed by Careem in collaboration with Kiwibot. As the firms figure our which locations are best suited for the service through a pilot project, the city's road transport authority will chalk out regulations for robotic vehicles to operate in the streets.

In addition to Careem's project, regional retail giant Majid Al Futtaim group has also set out go explore autonomous delivery for its grocery wing Carrefour, by joining hands with robot maker Yandex. The system will rely on self-driving vehicles by Yandex, that can map out safe routes in real-time, in order to deliver products in select locations across Emirati cities.

Carrefour's delivery bots will also be able to detect pedestrians, and use sidewalks at a lower speed, while customers can monitor their movement at any given time. Yandex's track record of making tens of thousands of deliveries in Russia before arriving in Dubai, lends more reliability to the service.