Not long ago, a small wheeled robot trundling down a sidewalk was an occasion for delight. For many, the robots were cute, they were harmless, and they felt like a glimpse of a friendlier future. The tone has changed from wonder to annoyance — sometimes to outright hostility. What happened? 

The sidewalk delivery robot industry turns eleven this year if you count from Starship Technologies' founding in 2014. We now have enough history — and enough press coverage — to ask a question that marketing reports routinely dodge or barely whisper: Has public acceptance kept pace with fleet growth?

In the February 2026 issue of our enews bulletin, we highlighted a number of publications, conferences, and stories that are contributing to a shift in society's readiness for public-area mobile robots and related technologies.

CES is still a consumer-technology show, but robotics has become increasingly central. At CES 2026, the tone shifted. The most meaningful signal was not a single headline-grabbing machine, but a broader pattern: robots are moving out of controlled environments and into shared spaces, the places where people simply live their lives. CES 2026 also highlighted an engineering direction that matters for public deployment: robots designed for rougher, less structured environments..

Check out highlights from our 2025 year-end enews bulletin.

The Urban Robotics Foundation (URF) is pleased to announce the appointment of Adam Beck as its new Head of Urban Planning.

Is the Magna last-mile delivery robot delivering food more like a Starship robot delivering food or more like a Waymo robotaxi delivering a human? Here's what makes roadway delivery robots different from sidewalk delivery robots, and why the safety challenges matter for every city considering this technology.

Date Published: April 20, 2025 On April 15, 2025, the Urban Robotics Foundation hosted our 2025 Executive Update webinar. Our Managing...

Our monthly enewsletters are sent to subscribers on a regular basis. If you missed an update from the last quarter, read on!

Intelligent Community Forum launched a new "Institute" based in Fredericton, NB, Canada on October 28-29, 2024.

On Oct 2nd, URF & CITM brought together a panel of experts to share highlights from recent PMR pilot projects in airport public facilities.

Our monthly enewsletters are sent to subscribers near the beginning of each month. Check out this blog post for links to recent editions.

On June 19th, the Intelligent Community Forum, a global partner of URF, announced their Top7 Intelligent Communities of 2024.

Register today for Sept 4th "PMR Discovery Workshop" jointly presented by Robotics Australia Group and the Urban Robotics Foundation.

This is a summary of our recent panel discussion with two experts in the deployment of PMRs. You can also watch on YouTube!

This is our 2nd public update regarding progress on DTS ISO 4448 - Public area mobile robots (PMR) for which Bern Grush is the global lead.

For those curious about both mobile robots and Odense's renowned robotics community, "R-24" is the place to be on March 13-15, 2024.

The Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) and URF announce a partnership aiming to share best practices on robot integration in communities.

As co-founder and CEO of ARIBO Autonomous Solutions, Corey is an automated mobility strategist, global thought leader, and innovator.

We are delighted to start 2024 with the release of URF's Executive Guide to PMRs: What you need to know about Public-area mobile robots