Pies will fall from the sky when Jet’s Pizza, the Detroit-based brand with more than 400 locations across 22 states, starts offering drone delivery.
Zipline, which calls itself the “world’s largest autonomous delivery system,” says Jet’s will begin using drone technology to deliver orders in the pizza brand’s home city.
Each Zipline Platform 2 (P2) drone is reportedly capable of delivering two large Detroit-style pizzas along with sides.
Related: This small pizza chain aims to make drone delivery a reality
“Having the best pizza in the world doesn’t matter if it doesn’t arrive fresh from the oven. Zipline will let us expand our delivery area to bring great, hot food to even more of our loyal customers,” said John Jetts, CEO of Jet’s Pizza.
“With Zipline, customers will get a magical and consistent end-to-end Jet’s experience regardless of traffic or weather,” Jetts added.
Pagliacci Pizza, a 25-store chain in the Seattle area, also plans to introduce drone delivery to its customers. Drone delivery during peak hours can reduce the amount of time it takes for a pizza to get from the oven to the customer’s doorstep—without the negative environmental impact. “Half of our business is delivery, and having a 4,000-pound vehicle delivering a five-pound order probably isn’t the best thing for our environment,” Matt Galvin, co-owner of Pagliacci, has told PMQ. “We felt this was a real opportunity for us to lessen our carbon emissions. Plus, we see drones being wildly successful and well-received by customers who like how quickly deliveries can happen. At first, I think customers think it’s cool because of the novelty, but then it quickly becomes: ‘Wow, instant delivery.’”
Zipline’s P2 drones will also start delivering orders from Panera Bread in the Greater Seattle area. Panera customers will place orders for Zipline delivery directly through Zipline’s app and get their orders delivered quickly and conveniently by drone to their homes.
“We’re excited to take the guest experience we provide at our Panera Bread restaurants to new heights, literally, thanks to our partnership with Zipline,” said Greg Flynn, founder, chairman and CEO of Flynn Group, the world’s largest franchise operator. “Delivery delays, especially in metro areas like Seattle, are unpredictable; however, utilizing Zipline’s state-of-the-art drone technology, we’re addressing those challenges and significantly reducing the wait times from when orders are placed to when guests can enjoy them.”
On April 19, Zipline celebrated completing 1 million commercial drone deliveries to customers. “If Zipline’s autonomous software was a human pilot, it would have already spent more than 120 years flying in the air,” the company said in a press release.
About 4 billion instant deliveries happen each year in the U.S., and this expansion comes at a time when restaurant customers are looking for consistent, convenient delivery options. Meal deliveries in the United States alone have grown by more than 350% since 2019, according to Bloomberg Second Measure.
