Originally published on Bizjournals
Argo AI LLC, the Pittsburgh-based self-driving vehicle technology startup, announced a new partnership with a local volunteer-run food salvage platform and a food distributor to autonomously deliver meals to those facing food insecurity throughout the region.
The partnership will see Argo autonomously deliver meals sourced by food saved from 412 Food Rescue, a local nonprofit that recovers surplus food from retailers and businesses that would otherwise go to waste. Argo will also partner with its food service provider Parkhurst Dining — the contract dining division of Eat’n Park Hospitality Group — to deliver surplus food Argo originally offered to its employees out of its Strip District headquarters.
“We’re driven by our purpose of reimagining the human journey, and that includes ensuring self-driving vehicles are broadening access to transportation and goods to everyone in the communities where we operate,” Summer Fowler, chief corporate responsibility officer at Argo, said in a prepared statement. “We see an opportunity for autonomous vehicles to offer reliable delivery of food donations to address food insecurity, and we are proud to launch this initiative with 412 Food Rescue and Parkhurst.”
The parent organization of 412 Food Rescue — Food Rescue Hero — claims to have saved 100 million pounds of food from going to waste across the country as of July 2022 and since its original founding in 2015 when it only went by 412 Food Rescue. Food Rescue Hero, also based in Pittsburgh, now operates in 25 cities across the U.S.
“412 Food Rescue has always aimed to modernize food recovery to make donating surplus food easier for businesses, and delivering that food immediately, making food access convenient for people in need,” Leah Lizarondo, co-founder and CEO of 412 Food Rescue, said in a prepared statement. “We believe in using every tool in our technological toolbox to get food to people who need it, and we're excited to explore how one of the most innovative technologies we've seen in Pittsburgh can be used for good through our partnership with Argo.”
An estimated one-in-five Pittsburgh residents face food insecurity, Argo and 412 Food Rescue said in a release. The local existence of food deserts — an area with limited or no access to fresh and affordable food — as well as other barriers like limited transportation options or business-focused operating hours of area food banks further exacerbates the need for more options that address the needs of the hungry, the organizations said.
Enter the self-driving car, which Argo is betting will be able to use to help address this need in Pittsburgh. While a human safety operator will remain in the vehicle per current Pennsylvania law, Argo is also hoping that another demonstration of its tech's potential will further validate its planned offering to the public as it readies an eventual commercial rollout.
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