Walmart is increasing its self-driving car program to incorporate Ford Motor and Argo AI, an autonomous automobile start-up backed by the automaker.

The businesses mentioned Wednesday that the collaboration will use Ford Escape hybrids with Argo AI know-how for Walmart deliveries in Miami, the District of Columbia and Austin, Texas.

This system will enable Walmart prospects to put orders of groceries and different objects on-line for door-to-door autonomous supply.

“We’re excited to broaden our autonomous supply efforts in three new markets alongside Argo and Ford,” mentioned Tom Ward, Walmart U.S. senior vice chairman of final mile supply, in a press release. “This collaboration will additional our mission to get merchandise to the houses of our prospects with unparalleled velocity and ease, and in flip, will proceed to pave the way in which for autonomous supply.”

Ford and Walmart operated a pilot program with self-driving autos in 2018. The retail big at present operates self-driving supply pilots with Gatik and Normal Motors-backed Cruise. Along with the partnerships, Walmart took an undisclosed stake earlier this yr in Cruise.

On-line grocery orders are a central a part of Walmart+, the big-box retailer’s membership program that launched a yr in the past. One of many perks of this system is free, limitless grocery deliveries to members’ houses. The subscription service competes with Amazon Prime.

Walmart, the nation’s largest grocer, noticed dramatic progress in on-line gross sales in the course of the pandemic as extra customers stayed at dwelling and replenished their fridges from the sofa. Its e-commerce gross sales within the U.S. grew 79% within the final fiscal yr, which ended Jan. 31. But Walmart hasn’t turned a revenue with its e-commerce enterprise, placing stress on the corporate to provide you with more cost effective methods to ship packing containers and armfuls of things to doorways.

The brand new collaboration is the primary multicity service relating to autonomous autos for Walmart. Bryan Salesky, Argo AI founder and CEO, mentioned specializing in three cities will present “the potential for autonomous car supply providers at scale.”

Initially, the businesses will deploy a small fleet in every of the three cities, with the plan to broaden over time, in line with an Argo AI spokeswoman. Argo AI, which Ford collectively owns with German automaker Volkswagen, is testing self-driving autos within the three cities and others.

Commercializing autonomous autos has been far tougher than many predicted even a couple of years in the past. The challenges have led to a consolidation within the autonomous car sector after years of enthusiasm touting the know-how as the following multitrillion-dollar marketplace for transportation firms.

Some firms, resembling Uber Applied sciences, have given up on growing the techniques in home, whereas others resembling Zoox bought to Amazon. Waymo stays the highest-profile front-runner, working a public autonomous car fleet in Arizona.

– CNBC’s Melissa Repko contributed to this report.