Instacart is joining e-commerce technology start-up Fabric to equip fulfilment centres with robots in an effort to speed up delivery and cut costs as it prepares for an initial public offering.
The company is planning to build new standalone warehouses as well as fulfilment centres for supermarket partners, Instacart said on Thursday. The multi-year deal is the first step in what the grocery delivery service calls a “next-gen” fulfilment process that will use Fabric’s robotic technology to pick items, while gig workers deliver food to customers’ doorsteps.
“Our next-gen fulfilment work will also help reduce some of the things that make in-store shopping cumbersome for Instacart shoppers, like crowded store aisles, out of stock items and long checkout lines,” chief technology officer Mark Schaaf said.
Bloomberg reported in June that Instacart was planning to build automated fulfilment centres but had fallen behind schedule. The company plans to start pilot schemes with supermarket partners in the coming year.
San Francisco-based Instacart announced the partnership as it looks to revamp its labour-intensive model, which currently depends on 500,000 gig workers. The pandemic catapulted Instacart from a start-up to a delivery behemoth as consumers looking to avoid shops rushed online.
After Walmart, the company is now the second-largest grocery delivery and pickup company in the US, with 45 per cent of the market as of June, Bloomberg Second Measure data shows. Instacart doubled its valuation to $39 billion in a funding round in March when it raised $265 million from investors.
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ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
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GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
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Price, base / as tested: Dh409,000 / Dh467,000
Engine: 3.0-litre V6
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Power: 430hp @ 5,750rpm
Torque: 580Nm @ 4,500rpm
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Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
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Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
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Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
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What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
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Power: 105hp (engine), plus 43.5hp (battery)
Torque: 147Nm (engine), plus 170Nm (battery)
Fuel economy, combined: 3.4L / 100km
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16 years, 68 days old
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1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
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3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
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Karwaan
Producer: Ronnie Screwvala
Director: Akarsh Khurana
Starring: Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Mithila Palkar
Rating: 4/5
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
RESULT
Manchester City 5 Swansea City 0
Man City: D Silva (12'), Sterling (16'), De Bruyne (54' ), B Silva (64' minutes), Jesus (88')
Rankings
ATP: 1. Novak Djokovic (SRB) 10,955 pts; 2. Rafael Nadal (ESP) 8,320; 3. Alexander Zverev (GER) 6,475 ( 1); 5. Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) 5,060 ( 1); 6. Kevin Anderson (RSA) 4,845 ( 1); 6. Roger Federer (SUI) 4,600 (-3); 7. Kei Nishikori (JPN) 4,110 ( 2); 8. Dominic Thiem (AUT) 3,960; 9. John Isner (USA) 3,155 ( 1); 10. Marin Cilic (CRO) 3,140 (-3)
WTA: 1. Naomi Osaka (JPN) 7,030 pts ( 3); 2. Petra Kvitova (CZE) 6,290 ( 4); 3. Simona Halep (ROM) 5,582 (-2); 4. Sloane Stephens (USA) 5,307 ( 1); 5. Karolina Pliskova (CZE) 5,100 ( 3); 6. Angelique Kerber (GER) 4,965 (-4); 7. Elina Svitolina (UKR) 4,940; 8. Kiki Bertens (NED) 4,430 ( 1); 9. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) 3,566 (-6); 10. Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) 3,485 ( 1)
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