Walmart leans into drone delivery - Axios

Drone delivery is now available at two more NWA Walmarts.

What's happening: DroneUp recently opened hubs at the Supercenter on Walton Boulevard in Bentonville and the Pinnacle Hills store in Rogers.

The first opened last year at the Neighborhood Market on Main Street in Farmington.

The big picture: Walmart has explored using drones for delivering goods to customers over the past few years. The company also uses Zipline drones to transport items from its Pea Ridge store.

DroneUp began working with Walmart on delivering COVID-19 tests earlier in the pandemic.

How it works: The drones can make deliveries weighing up to 5 pounds. You order online, and it generally takes less than 30 minutes for your package to arrive, Amy Wiegand, DroneUp spokesperson, told Axios.

Deliveries cost $3.99 and are available 8am-8pm daily.

What they're saying: "Walmart has the mission to provide customers with fast delivery, and we are the drone solution for that, and being in Northwest Arkansas, it's high visibility. It's a place where we can get immediate feedback to iterate on that feedback to improve customer experience," Alex Buckley of DroneUp told Axios.

Be smart: The deliveries are only available within 1 mile for now because of Federal Aviation Administration regulations, which Buckley said he hopes will be loosened, allowing deliveries to go further in the future.

Yes, and: DroneUp will also offer services out of its Walmart-based hubs besides customer delivery. The company has aircraft that can be used for cinematography or to assist real estate companies with roof inspections, for example, Wiegand said.

What's next: The company has no plans for more hubs at NWA stores for now, but intends to add them in Florida, Virginia, Utah, Texas and Arizona.

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