Amazon’s Prime Air allows drone deliveries of certain groceries, electronics, medicines, and household products in about 30 minutes|William Warby|CC BY 2.0
Prime Air, Amazon’s drone delivery service, is expanding to 500 cities and towns, including Chicago, Atlanta, Cleveland, Syracuse, and New York, by the end of 2026.
The service expands 30-minute delivery to hundreds of additional communities for select items under 5 pounds.
It is currently available in 11 metro areas, and Amazon says it has already completed hundreds of thousands of drone deliveries this year.
The expansion comes as Walmart, DoorDash and Uber push deeper into drone delivery.
The technology still faces hurdles, including government rules, bad weather, safety concerns, and noise complaints.
Amazon also needs to make drone deliveries affordable compared with traditional deliveries by vans, cars and bikes. The company sees drones as a faster option for customers who need certain orders quickly.