A routine shift allegedly turned dangerous in a collision that sounds like something out of a sci-fi warning.
An Arizona woman says she was nearly run down by an autonomous food delivery robot inside a parking garage.
Trudy Perez, then 73, was working as a parking attendant at an Arizona State University parking structure in Tempe in 2023 when, according to her claim, the delivery bot struck her and knocked her to the ground.
Perez is now taking legal action against Starship Technologies, the company behind the delivery robot, alleging she sustained serious injuries, including a fractured spine. The lawsuit is scheduled to go before a jury early next year.
The complaint says the robot had been moving ahead of Perez before it abruptly backed up and crashed into her.
Perez also alleges the machine reversed a second time after she had already fallen. An Arizona State University police report said she was “laying on the ground and appeared in pain” and had a 4-inch cut on her left arm.
Vrana Law Firm, which is representing Perez, told 12News in a statement that the injuries have left her with “lifelong impairment.”
Attorney Josh Kolsrud, who is not connected to the case, told the outlet that Arizona law requires delivery robots to be properly supervised remotely by human operators and to carry insurance.
“That means that they are responsible for not injuring other people wrongly, and also, you know, if somebody damages the robot, they can be held liable as well,” he explained.
“Including having insurance of at least $100,000 on each robot, as well as having a human, a real person that’s monitoring the robot itself.”
The Post has reached out to Starship Technologies for comment.
