The little robots that could: At Morgan State, Kiwibots deliver food to students and faculty

Picture this: You’re a student at Morgan State University, cramming for exams in the library during  finals week.

You’re starving, but you hardly have time to grab a bite. You could order food online from an off-campus restaurant, but that might take awhile and it’s probably not covered under your meal plan.

At Morgan, along with a growing number of colleges across the country, there’s another option: Log in to the campus food provider’s app on your phone, choose an option from the menu and select delivery. A robot will bring your meal to you — whether you’re at the library, your dorm or the athletic complex.

Resembling something like little refrigerators on wheels, the robots arrived on Morgan’s campus in 2021 and were met with some bewilderment.

“At first, I didn’t know what they were,” said senior Tyler Hairston, who is from St. Angelo, Texas. “I thought they were like recording people or something like that. I thought they were cameras.”

Only after repeated trips to the cafeteria and conversations with friends did Hairston learn what they were. Students call them “little bots” or “kiwis,” derived from the company that makes them, Kiwibot, said Hairston, the 36th Mr. Morgan State University. They’re everywhere now.

“Somebody was visiting on campus,” Hairston said.” I was actually giving them a tour. I didn’t see the Kiwibot come up — nobody saw the Kiwibot come up. But out of nowhere, we just hear a little thump on somebody’s leg.”

Partners with the university’s food service provider, SodexoMagic, Kiwibot came to campus after Morgan officials asked Sodexo leadership for something new, said Tranay Price, field marketing specialist for the food company, who demonstrated what the robot can do on a recent afternoon.

Price took out her phone, logged on to the app and scrolled through the food options. There were sandwiches, sushi, salads, pizza and Mexican cuisine.

“Essentially you can order anything on campus,” said Price, adding that even convenience store items were available.

She opted to build her own sub: Wheat bread, turkey, pepper jack cheese, mustard, lettuce and banana peppers. She chose delivery, asking for her food to be sent to Tyler Hall, the university’s student services building. Finished, she paid and submitted her selection.

In the made-to-order section of the food court, an order flashed across a tablet and a food-service worker got to work. After she wrapped up the sandwich and placed it in a bag, the worker set it aside for whenever a robot was available. One was already waiting outside.

Partnering with Sodexo, Kiwibot delivers food at 30 American college campuses, said John Tarin, Kiwibot’s head of operations for the U.S. The company is either working, or has pilot programs, in 41 cities across the globe.

Kiwibot touts its product as climate-friendly.

Tarin said the robots, which run on rechargeable batteries, fit into sustainable development goals the United Nations set to be completed by 2030.

“Robotic delivery fleets are a sustainable solution for food deliveries,” Tarin said. “With our robot, we’re fighting pollution, reducing carbon emissions and traffic congestion to make our planet greener and safer.”

It costs about $7,500 to make the older model of Kiwibot, and approximately $11,000 to make the newer type, Tarin said. The company makes money through subscription and delivery fees. Students, he said, can either opt for a subscription service that includes a certain number of deliveries, or pay a $2 delivery fee per order.

Kiwibot operates at Gonzaga University, Howard University, Tulane and Marquette, among other schools, according to the company’s website. A competitor to Kiwibot, Starship Technologies operates at other universities.

Before they roll out robots at a campus, Kiwibot uses “state of the art technology to map up the whole place,” Tarin said.

The robots, which are level 4 out of 6 driving automation, meaning they do not require driver intervention in the event of an emergency, take it from there — and they’re pretty well-acquainted with campus.

“I even see it take the back ways behind the football field. I’ve seen it do that a few times,” said Hairston, who is studying early education.

The bots have screens on the front that flash emojis at passersby. Sometimes one will wink. Other times it goes with heart eyes.

Denzel Daley, a freshman from Connecticut, said students talk about Kiwibots on Fizz, a social media app popular on college campuses.

“People [pose] with the Kiwibot taking pictures. … making memes out of it all the time,” Daley said. “It’s cool. It’s like a piece of our community.”

On the afternoon in December, a Kiwibot opened its lid and an employee loaded Price’s meal. An insulated interior compartment keeps contents warm or cold. The robot sounded like a computer using dial-up internet as it calibrated the route.

It left the docking station outside the student center, passed Hughes Stadium and made a right in front of the Earl S. Richardson Library. There, it passed another Kiwibot.

There were no funny reactions that day. None like junior Randy Smith, a Baltimore native who is studying multiplatform productions, has witnessed.

“I saw some people scream,” Smith said. “I saw some people run away. I saw some people take pictures with it. I saw some people be nosy and try to see what’s inside.”

Instead, the robot throttled toward the student services building, where Chevaun Whitman, director of Bear Essentials One Stop Student Services, was waiting for a delivery.

The sight of the robot cheered her up. “I love this little thing,” she told a colleague.

“We have a high-volume, high-traffic area, so getting away for lunch is a little difficult at times,” Whitman later explained. “It’s convenient.”

But the meal wasn’t hers, and only the person who ordered the food could open the Kiwibot.

Price retrieved her food and notified the app that she’d received it. The little robot backed up and began driving away.

She didn’t even have to leave a tip.

Once your food is delivered to one of several drop-off locations around Morgan State University, the customer can open the Kiwibot through the app. This order took 14-minutes from start to finish. (Kevin Richardson/Staff Photo)