- Amazon is reportedly developing smart glasses that its delivery workers could use.
- The glasses could provide navigation and take pictures of packages upon delivery, Reuters reported.
- Amazon is said to face challenges such as battery life and location data as it creates the glasses.
Amazon's next attempt to speed up package delivery may involve smart glasses.
The online retailer is developing glasses for its delivery workers that could show them exactly where to go in a building, such as which way to turn in order to find a delivery location, and take pictures of packages once they're delivered, Reuters reported on Monday, citing unnamed sources with knowledge of the project.
Having that information on a small screen embedded in the glasses instead of a smartphone or other hand-held device would free up workers to carry more packages and save time on deliveries, Reuters reported.
The project, known within Amazon by the code name "Amelia," is far from certain to launch, according to the report. Some challenges that Amazon has reportedly faced include creating a battery with enough capacity for a several-hour-long delivery shift and gathering enough location data for the glasses to guide workers.
"We are continuously innovating to create an even safer and better delivery experience for drivers," an Amazon spokesperson told Business Insider. "We otherwise don't comment on our product roadmap."
Amazon, like Meta and Snap, has previously developed smart glasses that were consumer-facing.
Amazon has offered Echo Frames, its smart glasses for consumers with voice assistant Alexa integrated, since 2019. The Echo Frames don't include cameras or an integrated display but do feature microphones and built-in speakers. Amazon is using Echo Frames as the basis of its delivery-focused version, according to Reuters. Sales of the latest version of Echo Frames totaled fewer than 10,000 over the past year, according to the report.
Glasses for delivery drivers would be another way that Amazon is using technology to try to make its delivery operations more efficient, especially during the final stretch, or "last mile," of delivery.
Amazon is already planning to add AI technology that will show its delivery people which packages to deliver in the back of delivery vans at specific stops starting in early 2025.
The company announced in July that it had delivered 5 billion items to Prime members globally on the same day or the following day so far this year, a 30% year-over-year increase. Over the years, some Amazon delivery workers have said that Amazon has highly ambitious delivery targets and expects them to deliver more packages than they can during their shifts.
In October, Amazon CFO Brian Olsavsky said that the company's quick delivery times are making it more attractive for customers to order cheap, everyday items, such as beauty products and shelf-stable groceries, from the retailer.
Amazon is also opening more facilities designed to deliver customers' orders — including those placed through Amazon Prime — on the same day that they're placed.
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