No Ifs, Ands or Buts–Just Bots (and Tech Innovations)

Domino’s Pizza is taking another big step forward as a tech and delivery innovator, with the Aug. 21 grand opening of an “Innovation Garage” at its headquarters in Ann Arbor, Mich. The 33,000-sq.ft. facility will operate as a fully functioning Domino’s pizza theater to test out delivery and in-store technology.

Outfitted with the brand’s latest customer-facing technology including order kiosks, carryout trackers, and GPS delivery tracking, the two-story Innovation Garage allows cross-functional teams to collaborate on, create and test new technology in a store setting.

Since the facility isn’t open to the public, the 150 Domino’s employees sited there can use it as a blank canvas to test out store layouts, different ways to order, and new customer-facing technology and interactions. The building includes a dedicated space for testing delivery innovations, including the GPS delivery tracking experience, the customer interface on autonomous pizza delivery vehicles, and robots like Nuro's R2 – an unmanned vehicle that will test pizza deliveries later this year. The facility also will contain all of Domino's current AnyWare ordering technology, in-store technology and a quality assurance lab.

“As a pizza company with a focus on technology, we want our team members to have a workspace that encourages experimentation and fosters an environment to take risks, test innovations and fail-fast so they can bring their best cutting-edge ideas to life for the brand’s customers and stores,” Kelly Garcia, Domino’s chief technology officer said in a press statement.

Domino’s has 16,314 stores globally, including nearly 250 net new stores during the second quarter of 2019.