Residents of Milton Keynes have been left both baffled and entertained by a feature in a prestigious American publication that portrays their Buckinghamshire town as a technologically advanced dystopia, all thanks to its fleet of six-wheeled delivery robots.
A Glimpse into a 'Robot-Filled Future'
New York Magazine, a Pulitzer Prize-winning periodical, dispatched a writer to Milton Keynes last summer to report on the now-familiar sight of Starship Technologies' robots whizzing along the town's pavements. Founded by two alumni of the internet phone firm Skype, these trundling devices have been delivering takeaway food and groceries from Co-op stores since 2018.
However, it was the magazine's depiction of Milton Keynes itself that captured local attention. Described as 'England's strangest town' and a prime location to 'glimpse our robot-filled future', the article prompted a wave of flummoxed and amused reactions from those who call the new town home.
"As someone from Milton Keynes this is just so important and funny to me," said one local, while another quipped, "'Strange' is the kindest adjective to describe Milton Keynes." Several residents commended the fact that Milton Keynes, after decades as a national punchline, was finally receiving recognition on an international stage.
The Perfect Training Ground for Robots
Influencer Laura Larkins added: "I go to Milton Keynes a lot to run errands and while I have yet to see these robots, it does have a very weird, boxy, dystopian vibe." Writer Stefan-Rhys Williams commented on X, formerly Twitter: "Very funny to me that New York magazine are writing about Milton Keynes like it’s at the vanguard of modernity."
The town's unique layout, it turns out, is precisely what made it ideal for this technological trial. Developed as a new town in 1967 to address a national housing shortage, Milton Keynes was envisioned as a modern alternative to cramped post-war London. Built upon Iron Age, Roman, and Saxon settlements, its design featured an American-style grid of roads, wide boulevards, and a groundbreaking 200 miles of 'redways' – dedicated paths for pedestrians and cyclists.
While this design led to a perception of soullessness over time, with approximately 130 roundabouts necessitating car travel, it provided the perfect, enclosed training ground for Starship's autonomous fleet.
Under its Intelligencer heading, writer Joanna Kavenna noted that Milton Keynes initially seemed an 'odd' choice for the robots until she visited. She quoted a friend saying, "There’s always something odd about utopias... They’re perfect. And real life is never perfect. So they’re always quite unreal." Kavenna concluded that the delivery robots, navigating the town's roundabouts and famous concrete cow sculptures, fitted the vibe of Milton Keynes perfectly.
From Pandemic Hero to National Expansion
The author also observed, "Milton Keynes is very green with beautiful parks and endless trees... it feels as if you are driving through a forest, onward, forever. Or as if civilization has already collapsed and nature has reclaimed its territory."
The Starship robots, which travel at walking speed, are loaded with a suite of sensors to detect people, cars, and infrastructure, operating with 99 percent autonomy. A human operator can intervene if needed, and the robots can ask for help or sound a siren if attacked. While generally safe, a dog walker discovered two years ago that the system isn't flawless when a robot rammed his pet.
The service truly came into its own during the coronavirus pandemic, offering contact-free deliveries. Starship endeared itself further to the community by making deliveries free for NHS workers.
Deeming the Milton Keynes trial a success, Starship has since expanded to other UK locations with similar layouts, including Cambourne, Northampton, Trafford, Wakefield, and Leeds, as well as university campuses across the United States.
Last month, co-founder Ahti Heinla expressed a desire to expand the fleet across Britain but highlighted the need for ministers to set nationwide regulatory rules. He told The Guardian, "We are ready to invest in UK as well to expand larger in UK as well, but we would like this regulatory clarity." He also insisted the robots are not stealing jobs but are "supporting businesses by addressing the demand for deliveries from time-squeepped Brits."
