Carolyn Marvin, a 78-year-old semi-retired communications professor at the University of Pennsylvania, has been confronting and blocking autonomous food delivery robots in downtown Philadelphia, the Guardian reported.
The delivery machines, operated by Texas-based company Avride to carry Uber Eats orders, have expanded across the city under Pennsylvania regulations that recognise them as pedestrians. Marvin received a disorderly conduct citation from police for obstructing a business after refusing an order to clear a pavement, and she plans to contest the charge in court.
Avride stated that it operates nearly 1,000 delivery machines across more than 25 university campuses and cities including Jersey City and Austin. Marvin told the Guardian that robots do not belong in public areas, saying, "I take the position that this isn't inevitable."
