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Self-driving pizza delivery vehicles will hit Houston's roads

Self-driving pizza delivery vehicles will hit Houston's roads
Photo courtesy of Nuro and Domino's

Domino's and Nuro have picked Houston to launch a self-driving pizza delivery vehicle pilot program.

This article originally appeared on InnovationMap and was written by Natalie Harms.

Unmanned vehicles are taking over Houston, any way you slice it. Nuro, the robotics company specializing in commercialized self-driving cars, first entered the Houston market earlier this year with its grocery delivery partnership with Kroger. Now, the company has teamed up with Domino's Pizza to deliver an autonomous pizza delivery pilot program in Houston.

Only a select group of Houston Domino's customers will be able to have the option to choose an unmanned delivery process from the R2 vehicles. Currently, Nuro and Domino's have not revealed who will be able to use the service or when. In a news release from Domino's, the company notes that the technology will be available later this year.

"We are always looking for new ways to innovate and evolve the delivery experience for our customers," says Kevin Vasconi, Domino's executive vice president and chief information officer, in the release. "Nuro's vehicles are specially designed to optimize the food delivery experience, which makes them a valuable partner in our autonomous vehicle journey. The opportunity to bring our customers the choice of an unmanned delivery experience, and our operators an additional delivery solution during a busy store rush, is an important part of our autonomous vehicle testing."

On online orders, select customers will have the option to choose to receive delivery from one of the R2 vehicles. Once the order is in, the customers would receive a PIN code to unlock the compartment to access the pizza upon its arrival.

"We are excited to expand our autonomous delivery service in Houston with Domino's delivery," says Cosimo Leipold, Nuro's head of partner relations, in the release. "Domino's delivers millions of pizzas around the world every day, and the company shares our passion for focusing on the customer experience. We see incredible opportunity in offering Nuro's world-class autonomous technology to Domino's customers, accelerating our shared mission to transform local commerce."

Continue reading on InnovationMap to learn how self-driving cars will change Houston's landscape.

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Kings defeat the Rockets, 120-111. Photo by Alex Bierens de Haan/Getty Images.

Domantas Sabonis scored 27 points and Sacramento made 15 straight shots from the field to beat Houston 120-111 on Tuesday night and deny the Rockets the top seed in the NBA Cup quarterfinals.

The shooting spree by the Kings turned an eight-point deficit late in the second quarter into a 12-point lead midway through the third to give the Kings their only win in four NBA Cup games.

De’Aaron Fox added 22 points, Malik Monk had 17 points and a career-high 12 assists, and DeMar DeRozan scored 16.

The Rockets won their first three games in the NBA Cup and could have clinched the top seed in the West with a win over the Kings. Houston will host Golden State in the quarterfinals.

Jalen Green scored 28 to lead Houston and Alperen Sengun added 24.

Takeaways

Rockets: Houston had won three straight and 10 of 12 games before delivering a dud against Sacramento. The frustration led to coach Ime Udoka and Sengun getting ejected late in the fourth quarter.

Kings: Sacramento found its shooting touch after hitting less than 40% of its 3-point tries in six straight games. The Kings came into the day ranking sixth worst in the NBA by making 33.2% from 3 but went 14 for 30 against Houston.

Key moment

The Kings shooting run began shortly after a heated moment between the teams after a hard foul by Fox against Jabari Smith Jr. There were three technicals issued with Monk getting one for Sacramento and Smith and Dillon Brooks getting them for Houston.

Key stat

The Kings went nearly nine minutes of game action without missing a shot from the field. Sabonis and Fox each made four, DeRozan and Keegan Murray made three and Monk made one.

Up next

The Rockets play at Golden State on Thursday night. The Kings travel to face Memphis.

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