The retail industry continues to be a hotbed of patent innovation. Activity is driven by technology, environmental sustainability, regulatory reforms, and risk mitigation, and the growing importance of technologies such as customer service robotics, robotic inventory management, voice commerce, and smart checkout. In the last three years alone, there have been over 59,000 patents filed and granted in the retail industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Artificial intelligence in retail: autonomous delivery vehicle navigation. Buy the report here.

Smarter leaders trust GlobalData

However, not all innovations are equal and nor do they follow a constant upward trend. Instead, their evolution takes the form of an S-shaped curve that reflects their typical lifecycle from early emergence to accelerating adoption, before finally stabilizing and reaching maturity. 

Identifying where a particular innovation is on this journey, especially those that are in the emerging and accelerating stages, is essential for understanding their current level of adoption and the likely future trajectory and impact they will have. 

50+ innovations will shape the retail industry

According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which plots the S-curve for the retail industry using innovation intensity models built on over 126,000 patents, there are 50+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.

Within the emerging innovation stage, skin care recommenders, 3D garment modelling, in-store theft monitoring are disruptive technologies that are in the early stages of application and should be tracked closely. Smart checkout, personalized recommendation AI, voice commerce are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas is automated object recognition, which is now well established in the industry.

Innovation S-curve for artificial intelligence in the retail industry 

Autonomous delivery vehicle navigation system is a key innovation area in artificial intelligence 

An autonomous delivery vehicle navigation system works with the help of a global positioning system (GPS). Several GPS satellites provide real-time geographical data to figure out the latitude, longitude, speed, and course for the delivery vehicle to navigate. 

GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 75+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established retail companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of autonomous delivery vehicle navigation system. 

Key players in autonomous delivery vehicle navigation system – a disruptive innovation in the retail industry  

‘Application diversity’ measures the number of applications identified for each patent. It broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.

‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of countries each patent is registered in. It reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.

Patent volumes related to autonomous delivery vehicle navigation system

Company Total patents (2021 - 2023) Premium intelligence on the world's largest companies
Citigroup 6 Unlock Company Profile
Lyft 17 Unlock Company Profile
PayPal 4 Unlock Company Profile
OPTIMUM 3 Unlock Company Profile
eBay 40 Unlock Company Profile
Ilitch 3 Unlock Company Profile
Qualcomm 4 Unlock Company Profile
Subaru 3 Unlock Company Profile
Toyota Motor 98 Unlock Company Profile
Cox Enterprises 126 Unlock Company Profile
Baidu 7 Unlock Company Profile
Alphabet 22 Unlock Company Profile
Thryv 4 Unlock Company Profile
Dentsu Group 10 Unlock Company Profile
Alibaba Group 7 Unlock Company Profile
Hyundai Motor 12 Unlock Company Profile
Aptiv 6 Unlock Company Profile
Nissan Motor 11 Unlock Company Profile
General Electric 5 Unlock Company Profile
Honda Motor 31 Unlock Company Profile
Panasonic 7 Unlock Company Profile
Porsche Automobil 5 Unlock Company Profile
General Motors 3 Unlock Company Profile
Omron 6 Unlock Company Profile
Ocado Group 16 Unlock Company Profile
SK 4 Unlock Company Profile
Sony Group 4 Unlock Company Profile
Fujitsu 3 Unlock Company Profile
LG 7 Unlock Company Profile
IBM 17 Unlock Company Profile
Denso 7 Unlock Company Profile
Brookfield 26 Unlock Company Profile
SoftBank Group 9 Unlock Company Profile
Kia 12 Unlock Company Profile
Ford Motor 60 Unlock Company Profile
Iqzone 4 Unlock Company Profile
Uber Technologies 52 Unlock Company Profile
Didi Global 61 Unlock Company Profile
Haystack Technologies 27 Unlock Company Profile
Samsung Group 3 Unlock Company Profile
Gogoro 214 Unlock Company Profile
Nuro 130 Unlock Company Profile
Xiaomi 3 Unlock Company Profile
GT Gettaxi 3 Unlock Company Profile
Navteq 3 Unlock Company Profile
Omron Tateisi Electronics 14 Unlock Company Profile
Blissway 3 Unlock Company Profile
Plunkett's Pest Control 4 Unlock Company Profile
Here 6 Unlock Company Profile
Grab 7 Unlock Company Profile

Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics

Gogoro is the leading patent filer in autonomous delivery vehicle navigation system. Some other key patent filers in the autonomous delivery vehicle navigation system space include Nuro, Cox Enterprises, and Toyota Motor. Recently, Gogoro launched its Smartscooters and battery-swapping technology in Israel. After its initial launch in Tel Aviv, the company plans to expand to other Israeli cities as well.

In terms of application diversity, Gogoro leads the pack, while Cox Enterprises and OPTIMUM stood in the second and third positions, respectively. By means of geographic reach, Nuro held the top position, followed by Cox Enterprises and Haystack Technologies.

Autonomous delivery vehicle navigation system will potentially become an important aspect in the retail industry. With retail companies increasingly focusing on automation, autonomous delivery vehicle navigation system will gain popularity. 

To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the retail industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Retail and Apparel.

Data Insights

From

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Blending expert knowledge with cutting-edge technology, GlobalData’s unrivalled proprietary data will enable you to decode what’s happening in your market. You can make better informed decisions and gain a future-proof advantage over your competitors.

GlobalData

GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.

GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.