Food delivery robots expand to small Finnish towns this spring

Grocery delivery robots will begin operating in the small Finnish municipalities of Isokyrö and Laihia this spring, regional retailer Osuuskauppa KPO announced. The service, already popular in other rural town centers, will use autonomous robots to transport orders within a three-kilometer radius of local S-Market stores.

According to Yle, the expansion follows successful trials in towns like Nivala and Oulainen, where demand exceeded expectations. Starship Technologies, the company behind the robots, maps each new area in advance to ensure safe navigation.

“They’re very charming creatures—I think locals will enjoy seeing them moving along the streets,” said Sami Nikula, store manager at Isokyrö’s S-Market. The town of 4,000 and Laihia (population 8,000) will receive three to five robots each, capable of carrying two shopping bags per trip.

Staff at the Isokyrö store will undergo training before the launch, scheduled for early May. Employees will practice loading orders and dispatching the robots, which operate using AI and pre-mapped routes. Hannu Juntunen, KPO’s market development director, noted that town size poses no technical challenge as long as infrastructure—such as bike paths—supports robot movement.

The S-Group, Finland’s largest retail cooperative, reports over one million robot deliveries nationwide in the past three years. KPO introduced the service last autumn, initially targeting larger cities before expanding to rural areas. “We can’t predict which locations will see higher demand,” Juntunen said, “but smaller towns have been positive surprises.”

Nikula expressed confidence in the timing, as dry spring roads will ease the robots’ debut. “They’ll stay within the town center, covering about three kilometers—no remote side roads,” he added.