Amazon, Alibaba will use self driving vehicles, robotics, 3d printing and AI to compete on same day delivery

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Amazon, which currently charges a $99 annual fee for two-day deliveries under its “Prime” service, will eventually offer two-tier pricing for delivery services, Jindel said. One will be a “Gold Prime” membership costing $199 to $249 a year that covers next-day deliveries, the other a platinum membership for $399 a year that includes same-day deliveries. Jindel said the pricing scheme will take effect only after Amazon builds out its distribution infrastructure.

Amazon is using and will using all aspects of
– Robotic warehouses
– Robotic trucks
– Drone delivery
– AI and quantum computers improved logistics and analytics
– additive manufacturing

to make their two-day, next day and same day delivery services.

Amazon transported more than 1 billion parcels of its own goods in 2015, more than FedEx Ground’s entire fiscal year 2012 annual volume. If current trends continue, Amazon by 2019 could be shipping as many parcels per year as FedEx Ground, SJ forecast.

Amazon will continue to invest heavily in transport services. It spent $11.5 billion in outbound shipping in 2015, and SJ forecasts that number to rise to $16.4 billion in 2016, $22.34 billion in 2017, and $29.6 billion in 2018.

Alibaba, through Cainiao, operates 128 warehouses and 180,000 express-delivery stations in China, offering same-day delivery in seven Chinese cities and next-day delivery in an additional 90.

Self driving cars, ride sharing and drone delivery will lower the cost of transportation and improve the efficiency of the supply chain.

There should be about 10 million autonomous or semi-autonomous cars and trucks on the roads by 2020.

There are multiple companies around the world focused on commercialization self driving trucks.