Kiwi Campus

Kiwi Campus, commonly known as Kiwi, is a delivery-robotics startup founded by Colombian entrepreneurs and developed in the University of California, Berkeley's SkyDeck incubator. The company provides short-distance food and other deliveries in the United States using a combination of human logistics workers, remotely supervised vehicles, and small autonomous or semi-autonomous robots called Kiwibots. The business originated in a courier service established by Felipe Chávez in Bogotá in 2015. After moving into the Berkeley startup ecosystem, Chávez and co-founders Jason Oviedo and Sergio Pachón experimented with robotic delivery as a way to reduce the cost of last-mile transportation. The company concluded that a single robot could not efficiently handle an entire restaurant-to-customer journey. Its operating model therefore divided the process among several vehicle types: a collection robot could retrieve a prepared order, a larger semi-autonomous tricycle could carry and sort multiple orders over the main portion of a route, and a compact four-wheeled Kiwibot could complete the final segment to the customer. The first Kiwibot prototypes began operating on the Berkeley campus in March 2017. The robots were subsequently used in parts of Berkeley, on the Stanford University campus in Palo Alto, and in San Jose. The company also announced a pilot in Sacramento in 2019 and began service in San Jose in 2020. By 2024, the company said its delivery network covered more than 30 universities in the United States. The source material also describes expansion beyond food delivery into business-to-business deliveries. Kiwibots are small electrically powered vehicles with approximately one cubic foot of cargo capacity. They can carry as many as five orders, while the larger tricycle can transport several Kiwibots. The robots use cameras, binocular vision, GPS, artificial-intelligence and machine-learning systems, and remote human supervision. Operators based in Medellín monitor the vehicles, intervene when a robot encounters a difficult situation, and may take control during street crossings or navigation failures. Customers generally unlock the cargo compartment at the destination, with the robot's animated eyes and gesture-based interface forming part of the service experience. Kiwi's operating model has attracted attention because it combines automation with substantial human involvement. Reports cited in the subject's reference material questioned how autonomous the system was in practice, stating that Colombian operators frequently intervened and that humans handled order collection from restaurants and difficult portions of routes. The company also faced a safety incident in December 2018, when a robot caught fire near the Berkeley student union because of a defective battery. Human delivery temporarily replaced robot operations while the issue was addressed. The company has pursued international and technology-related expansion. In April 2024, Kiwi Campus acquired Taipei-based Auto Mobility Solutions, a company described as specializing in chip manufacturing for robots. The acquisition was presented in the context of supply-chain and geopolitical concerns involving United States-China relations. In September 2025, a partnership was announced involving Rogers Communications and the University of British Columbia's Vancouver campus, where Kiwibots were expected to serve as campus ambassadors and help students navigate the bookstore and campus. Kiwi Campus is positioned at the intersection of autonomous mobility, food delivery, campus services, and last-mile logistics rather than as a conventional restaurant-delivery marketplace.

Kiwi Campus developed from a courier business founded by Felipe Chávez in Bogotá in 2015. The original service relied on human couriers, but the economics of delivery in the United States led Chávez to explore automation. He later described being struck by the high cost of ordering food for delivery, with the delivery fee approaching the price of the meal itself. Chávez founded the current company with chief technology officer Jason Oviedo and chief operating officer Sergio Pachón in 2016 while the venture was associated with the University of California, Berkeley's SkyDeck business incubator. The founders initially attempted to create a robot that would travel the full distance between a restaurant and a customer. That approach proved inefficient, leading Kiwi to develop a multi-stage system. Prepared orders could be collected by one type of robot, transferred to a larger semi-autonomous tricycle, and then assigned to compact Kiwibots for the final section of the trip. This architecture allowed the company to concentrate autonomous navigation on relatively short, predictable routes, especially on university campuses and in nearby neighborhoods. Prototype Kiwibots began operating on the Berkeley campus in March 2017. By May of that year, approximately 20 robots were reported to be operating on campus and in surrounding parts of Berkeley. By early 2018, the service had reached Stanford University in Palo Alto. In May 2018, Kiwi reported that it had completed more than 10,000 orders and was operating in a Berkeley area bounded approximately by Cedar and Sacramento Streets and Ashby and Piedmont Avenues. The company also discussed expansion into Palo Alto, San Jose, and Los Angeles during that period. Chávez received an entrepreneurship award from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in November 2018. The robots used by Kiwi were manufactured in China and assembled in Berkeley, according to the reference material. They incorporated multiple cameras, binocular vision, GPS, and software using artificial intelligence, machine learning, and deep learning. Human operators at a control center in Medellín monitored the fleet and intervened when robots became lost, encountered tampering, faced inaccurate GPS readings, or needed assistance crossing streets. Earlier prototypes depended heavily on an iPhone mounted on the robot as a primary sensor and required repeated route training. Rough sidewalks and the small wheels created additional navigation challenges. In serious cases, a human worker could finish the delivery on foot or with a Segway. The technology and labor model generated controversy. Although the robots were marketed as largely autonomous, reporting cited in the source material stated that human operators controlled or corrected them very frequently. Humans also collected orders from restaurants outside the immediate robot operating area, meaning the autonomous segment could represent only a portion of the total delivery. The reports further raised concerns about the compensation of Colombian operators, including an allegation that some workers were paid approximately two dollars per hour. These issues placed Kiwi's service within broader debates about labor standards, transparency in automation, and the practical limits of sidewalk robotics. Safety became another prominent issue in December 2018, when a Kiwibot caught fire near the Berkeley student union because of a defective battery. A passerby used a fire extinguisher, and Kiwi temporarily shifted to human courier deliveries. The company later continued developing its robotic delivery model. It announced a Sacramento pilot in August 2019 and began operating in San Jose in July 2020. By 2024, the company was described as serving more than 30 universities in the United States and had expanded its ambitions beyond food delivery to business-to-business logistics. In April 2024, Kiwi Campus acquired Taipei-based Auto Mobility Solutions, a company associated with robot chip manufacturing. The acquisition was presented as a response to supply-chain considerations and increasing geopolitical tensions between the United States and China. In September 2025, a partnership involving Rogers Communications and the University of British Columbia's Vancouver campus was announced. Under that arrangement, Kiwibots were expected to act as campus ambassadors and assist students with bookstore and campus navigation during the new academic term.

• 2025

  UBC Vancouver partnership announced

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  Kiwibots were announced for a Rogers Communications-linked innovation partnership at UBC Vancouver.

• 2024

  Expansion to more than 30 universities

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  Kiwi was described as operating across more than 30 universities in the United States.

• 2024

  Auto Mobility Solutions acquisition

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  Kiwi Campus acquired the Taipei-based robotics chip specialist Auto Mobility Solutions.

• 2020

  San Jose service begins

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  The company started delivery service in San Jose.

• 2019

  Sacramento pilot announced

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  Kiwi announced a pilot delivery program in Sacramento.

• 2018

  Stanford operations and early order milestone

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  Kiwi expanded to Stanford and reported more than 10,000 completed orders while operating in Berkeley.

• 2018

  Berkeley battery fire

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  A Kiwibot caught fire near the Berkeley student union, prompting a temporary move to human courier deliveries.

• 2018

  Chávez receives MIT entrepreneurship award

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  Felipe Chávez received an entrepreneurship award from MIT in November.

• 2017

  First Kiwibot prototypes deployed

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  Prototype delivery robots began operating on the UC Berkeley campus in March.

• 2016

  Kiwi Campus founded at Berkeley

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  Chávez, Jason Oviedo, and Sergio Pachón founded the company in the University of California, Berkeley startup ecosystem.

• 2015

  Courier service established in Bogotá

  [1]Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org

  Felipe Chávez began the courier business that later provided the starting point for Kiwi Campus.

Kiwi Campus positions itself as a robotics-enabled last-mile logistics provider focused on lower-cost, short-distance deliveries in dense environments such as university campuses. Its service combines autonomous navigation with remote human supervision and conventional human logistics support.

• Autonomous delivery robot · 2017

  Kiwibot

  Kiwibot is a compact four-wheeled delivery vehicle designed to carry food and other small orders over the final part of a route. The robot has approximately one cubic foot of cargo space and can carry up to five orders. It uses cameras, binocular vision, GPS, and machine-learning-based navigation, while remote operators monitor progress and intervene when necessary. A customer uses the service interface to open the cargo hatch at the destination. Kiwibots have been deployed particularly in university campuses and adjacent neighborhoods.

• Intermediate delivery vehicle

  Kiwibot tricycle system

  The semi-autonomous tricycle forms the middle stage of Kiwi's delivery architecture. It carries several smaller Kiwibots, with up to four reported to fit aboard, and transports sorted orders over the main portion of a route. The arrangement is intended to avoid asking a small sidewalk robot to travel the entire distance from a restaurant to a customer. Kiwibots are then dispatched for shorter last-mile segments.

• Order collection vehicle

  Restaurant collection robot

  Kiwi's multi-stage logistics model includes a vehicle used to collect prepared orders from restaurants and transfer them into the broader delivery network. The collection stage can involve human workers as well as robotic equipment, particularly when restaurants are outside the short autonomous operating range.

• Campus logistics service

  Campus delivery and navigation services

  Kiwi Campus applies its robotic fleet to university environments, where deliveries, campus assistance, and navigation support can be concentrated in relatively dense and bounded areas. The company has described uses extending beyond restaurant food delivery, including business-to-business logistics and ambassador-style deployments intended to help students locate campus facilities and services.

• Questions over human control and labor practices

  Reports cited in the reference material questioned Kiwi's presentation of its robots as largely autonomous. They stated that Colombian operators intervened very frequently, that humans collected orders from off-campus restaurants, and that robots traveled only a short portion of some routes. The same reporting raised concerns about the reported two-dollar-per-hour compensation of Colombian workers compared with United States minimum-wage standards.

  Source

Read more

• 2025UBC Vancouver Kiwibot ambassador partnership

  Canada

  Kiwi Campus was included in an innovation partnership involving Rogers Communications and the University of British Columbia's Vancouver campus. The planned deployment gave Kiwibots a role beyond delivery: they were to act as campus ambassadors and help students navigate the bookstore and campus.

  Outcome. The announcement described the deployment as planned for the new academic term; a completed rollout is not established by the supplied material.

  Source

• 2024

  Acquisition of Auto Mobility SolutionsM&A

  Background

  Kiwi cited the importance of robotics chip manufacturing amid supply-chain considerations and rising tensions between the United States and China.

  Action taken

  Kiwi Campus acquired Taipei-based Auto Mobility Solutions.

  Aftermath

  The transaction broadened Kiwi's connection to the robotics hardware and semiconductor supply chain; no financial terms are provided.

  Source

• 2024

  Expansion beyond food deliveryStrategy

  Background

  Kiwi's campus fleet and operating infrastructure could support deliveries other than restaurant meals.

  Action taken

  The company expanded its stated business scope to include business-to-business deliveries.

  Aftermath

  Kiwi's positioning broadened from food delivery toward campus logistics and general short-distance delivery.

  Source

• 2018

  Temporary return to human couriers after battery fireOther

  Background

  A Kiwibot caught fire near the Berkeley student union after a defective battery was identified.

  Action taken

  Kiwi temporarily suspended robotic delivery in the affected operation and used human couriers instead.

  Aftermath

  The company subsequently continued developing and deploying its robotic delivery model.

  Source

• 2016

  Shift from full-route robotics to a multi-stage delivery modelStrategy

  Background

  The company found that a single robot traveling the entire distance between restaurant and customer was inefficient and costly.

  Action taken

  Kiwi divided delivery into collection, intermediate transport by tricycle, and short final-mile trips by Kiwibot.

  Aftermath

  The structure became the basis for deployments in Berkeley, Stanford, San Jose, and other campus environments.

  Source

1. 1Kiwi Campusen.wikipedia.org