Beverage Beat

Enchanting future of AGVs, AMRs

To rescue Harry in the book and movie “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” Fred, George and Ron Weasley take their father’s Flying Ford Anglia, a vehicle Arthur Weasley enchanted to fly as well as become invisible to bring him back to their home, The Burrow. After missing the train to Hogwarts, Ron and Harry decide to fly the car to their school resulting in Muggle sightings, a near run-in with a train and attack by the Whomping Willow tree.

Although not as magical as an enchanted automobile, autonomous technology is helping change not just warehouse operations, but also consumer goods delivery.

The Material Handling Institute’s Mobile Automation Group is comprised of suppliers of both automatic guided vehicles (AGVs) and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs). Although both are computer-controlled wheel-based load carriers, most AGVs follow predefined paths, with some potential areas of freedom, while AMRs can determine their own path, but will attempt to follow suggested paths if they exist, MHI’s website states.

The growing adoption of AGVs has been well documented. For instance, Fortune Business Insights September report on Automated Guided Vehicle Market Size states that “the global automated guided vehicle market size was valued at $2.51 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow from $2.75 billion in 2025 to $5.44 billion by 2032, exhibiting a CAGR of 10.26% during the forecast period.”

Albeit smaller in comparison, AMR’s adoption also is on the rise. A January report from Mordor Intelligence on Autonomous Mobile Robot Market Size & Share states that market is valued at $4.49 billion in 2025 and is forecast to reach $9.26 billion by 2030, expanding at a 15.6% CAGR.

“Fast adoption of artificial intelligence, 5G-Advanced connectivity and lower-cost lithium-ion batteries together accelerate commercial feasibility across fulfilment, manufacturing and healthcare environments,” the report states.

Given this interest, it comes as no surprise that eCommerce is embracing autonomous technology.

Recently, DoorDash announced the development of DoorDash Dot, a commercial autonomous delivery robot to seamlessly navigate bike lanes, roads, and sidewalks, and is purpose-built for local commerce. Developed entirely in-house by the team at DoorDash Labs, Dot integrates with the delivery company’s existing marketplace infrastructure and new Autonomous Delivery Platform to enable seamless, scalable delivery, it says.

At one-tenth the size of a car and reaching speeds as fast as 20 mpg, Dot is built for neighborhood trips to help local businesses meet growing consumer demand, the company says.

Beginning with an early access program in Tempe and Mesa, Arizona, Dot is launching in the greater Phoenix metro area, marking the beginning of the company’s commercial deployment and paving the way for future expansion into multiple new markets.

“You don’t always need a full-sized car to deliver a tube of toothpaste or pack of diapers. That’s the insight behind Dot,” said Stanley Tang, co-founder and head of DoorDash Labs, in a statement. “The breakthrough wasn't just making it autonomous, but in making it reliable and efficient to serve the needs of local businesses and consumers. Dot is purpose-built for the millions of deliveries we facilitate every day.

“It is small enough to navigate doorways and driveways, fast enough to maintain food quality, and smart enough to optimize the best routes for delivery,” he continued. “Every design decision, from its compact size to its speed to the sensor suite, came from analyzing billions of deliveries on our global platform and understanding what actually moves the needle for merchants and consumers.”

Although we might not expect to see enchanted vehicles in the sky, the warehouse and delivery operations are seeing more robotic solutions take shape.