Here's an idea, don't launch these services in low trust, high crime places. In California, people can walk into a fully staffed Walgreens and commit blatant theft with no repercussions; a poor robot out in the world stands no chance.
There's a lot of parallels here. One I'm not on the side of Walgreens and I'm not on the side of the robot. If it comes down to petty crime but the only victim is an insured multi-billion dollar conglomerate I'm not going to shead a tear.
The moment I start deploying robots on publicly funded sidewalks in attempt to undercut the working class, feel free to crack one open and steal some pizza rolls.
I used to work in a Vons in Santa Monica in 2016. We had thefts every day. Some even got violent. Our manager got tired of it and threatened to break someone's legs after they walked out of the store with something one morning. The theft problem in CA is real.
Yeah, it's called shrinkage and it's built into the profit model of all brick and mortar stores. Every store has some degree of theft, and while it increased for a short time during the middle of the pandemic, its since tapered off to normal levels.
If you read the article I posted, its clear that the rate of theft is exaggerated overall in California, especially by the commentors chosen example, Walgreens.
I'm sorry to hear about your personal experience with Vons, but it also sounds like your manager had anger issues and was part of the problem.
When I'm working 12 hours a week and seeing 3-5 thefts, plus violence, every week, it's more than just "shrinkage." I can't speak for all of CA, but that was my experience.
The Ralph's surrounding Santa Monica are pretty evenly spaced out, except for a mysterious hole where downtown Santa Monica is. My store was near downtown Santa Monica.