A food delivery robot company issued an apology on Apr. 14 after one of its robots crashed into a bus shelter in West Town last month, and the company is now running an advertisement at the same location to address the incident.
The move comes as public scrutiny grows over Chicago’s pilot program allowing food delivery robots to operate on city sidewalks. The apology ad appears at the Grand Avenue bus shelter where a Serve Robotics vehicle broke through glass in late March, scattering debris across the sidewalk.
Shortly after that incident, another robot operated by Coco—one of two companies participating in Chicago’s pilot—collided with a different bus shelter in Old Town. Both Serve Robotics and Coco said they paid for repairs, which were completed quickly. However, viral videos and photos from both crashes have raised new concerns about pedestrian safety under the city’s ongoing pilot program approved in 2022.
Serve Robotics’ advertisement features a speech bubble from its robot named Nasir stating: “Dear West Town neighbors, I took ‘breaking into the market’ too literally. I’m really sorry about the bus stop … and the dramatic entrance. I promise to do better.”
A spokesperson for Serve Robotics explained that during March’s crash, three separate sensor systems failed to detect the glass wall of the shelter simultaneously. “We now treat areas like bus shelters with additional caution, so robots behave more carefully when they’re nearby,” said the spokesperson. “We’ve also improved how the system interprets environments with glass, and we’re updating both our software and next-generation hardware to make detection more reliable.”
Despite these incidents, food delivery robots remain active across many North Side neighborhoods including West Town where they are frequently seen along Grand Avenue. In December, Chicago created a dedicated 311 category for residents to report safety issues or complaints regarding these machines.
Looking ahead, it remains uncertain whether City Council will extend or end Chicago’s delivery robot pilot program beyond May 2027 as debate continues over public safety and accessibility.
