Food delivery robots have become a common sight on the sidewalks of Glendale, California, carting meals from downtown restaurants to residential areas.
Now city officials are calling for the robots to power down until they can learn more about who is operating them and how they’re impacting residents and restaurants.
In a 3-2 vote Tuesday, the Glendale City Council approved a moratorium on delivery bots following a debate that covered both the pitfalls and benefits of automated delivery. The pause will give the city time to create a regulatory framework for the bots.
The city became one of a few areas pumping the brakes on delivery robots, which have been spreading in big cities and on college campuses in recent years as consumer demand for delivery has soared.
Last month, a section of Chicago blocked delivery robots from expanding after widespread opposition from residents. And in Washington, D.C, transportation officials pushed back on efforts to fast-track delivery-bot regulations last fall.
In Glendale, some councilmembers said they don’t even know where the robots came from, how many there are or who is operating them. They’re concerned that the bots will impede sidewalks and roadways and potentially cause injuries.
One member noted that he’d recently seen a robot with a missing wheel blocking an ADA-accessible ramp.
“It’s like something out of a 1950s sci-fi movie,” said Councilmember Ardy Kassakhian during the meeting Tuesday, according to a recording on YouTube. “These robots just appeared on our streets and took over sidewalks.”
He also wondered how they might affect the livelihoods of human delivery workers.
Glendale currently has no ordinance or safety standards pertaining to delivery robots, but there’s also nothing in the law that prohibits them from operating, officials said.
And not everyone on the council was against the bots. Several members pointed to possible benefits, such as less road congestion and lower delivery costs. They also noted that there could be an opportunity for the city to generate revenue from the bots via licensing.
“I think a moratorium is a knee-jerk reaction,” said Mayor Ara Najarian, noting that restaurants have said they like the bots.
“Maybe do some study on it and see what’s actually going on, but come on guys, this isn’t like the devil on wheels here destroying our city.”
It was not clear how many robot delivery services are operating in Glendale, a city within Los Angeles County. But one of them is Serve Robotics, a Bay Area-based company that operates hundreds of bots across several U.S. cities.
Serve is integrated with Uber Eats and DoorDash for deliveries. It launched in Glendale in January 2025.
"We’re disappointed by Glendale’s decision to pause operations, but we understand the need to put clear rules in place," the company said in a statement. "Serve has completed hundreds of thousands of deliveries in cities across the U.S., and we’re looking forward to bringing that experience back to Glendale under a framework that works for everyone. In the meantime, we’re reallocating robots to meet customer demand in nearby areas in Los Angeles."
The halt in Glendale foreshadows some of the obstacles ahead for robot delivery companies as they look to scale across the country. They may face stricter regulations and the perception that they’re a nuisance.
Videos of robots getting stuck or tipped over are common on social media, for instance. In recent weeks, two different delivery robots were recorded shattering the glass at bus shelters in Chicago.
But they’ve also won people over. Delivery bots have proven popular on college campuses, and one of Serve’s robots has a recurring role on the Netflix show “Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney.” They have a novelty factor, and, as Glendale’s mayor observed, they’re cute.
“Where are the Star Wars fans out there?” Najarian said in defense of the bots. “This is R2-D2 in our day.”
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