--- title: "Bizarre Glitch Causes Delivery Robots to Swarm Busy City Sidewalk" description: "Roughly a dozen Coco delivery robots swarmed a busy Chicago sidewalk due to an apparent glitch, frustrating residents." date: "2026-09-08" modified: "2026-09-08" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins.md" url: "https://futurism.com/future-society/glitch-delivery-robots-swarm-chicago-sidewalk" categories: - "Food" - "Future Society" - "Robotics" - "Robots and Machines" --- # Bizarre Glitch Causes Delivery Robots to Swarm Busy City Sidewalk ![Screenshots of a swarm of Coco delivery robots on a sidewalk.]() *beccarunschicago via Instagram* The companies ushering in food delivery robots aren't buying themselves much goodwill in the Windy City. In the short amount of time they've been on Chicago streets, the bots have [sent residents to the hospital]() and [smashed through bus stops](), prompting local officials to set up [an exclusion zone]() prohibiting the companies from operating in a certain section of the city. Now, it seems the bots are also capable of swarming the city's busy sidewalk, making it all but impossible for residents to pass safely. A [clip shared]() by Chicago resident Becca Ostein on her morning run captured the bizarre moment when a swarm of delivery robots operated by the firm Coco caused a traffic jam on a sidewalk near Lincoln Park. Apparently caused by a freak glitch, the video shows Ostein attempting to pass a veritable obstacle course of a dozen squirming robots, their on-board lights flashing as they congregate on a patch of narrow sidewalk. Another bot is seen maneuvering off in the distance, though it isn't clear whether it's approaching or fleeing the fray. "Run route was crowded this morning," Ostein wrote in her caption of the video. https://www.instagram.com/reel/Dct3eKipij0/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&stkn=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== The video garnered plenty of reactions in the comments, the majority of which were negative. "As a disabled person this is an actual nightmare," one user replied. "They were swarming," Ostein [told *CBS News*]() in an interview following the incident. "They didn't seem to have anywhere to go. Without agile feet, no one could have gotten by." In a statement shared under Ostein's post, Coco apologized, admitting "that's not how our robots are designed to operate." "Our team caught it quickly, and the robots were cleared and operating normally within minutes," the company continued. "We've made sure this won't happen again." **More on robots:** *[As If There Was Any Question About Data Centers Being Weak Job Creators, Meta Is Now Deploying Robots to Maintain Them]()* ## Author At Futurism, I focus on the intersection of technology and power — examining the economics, history, and politics behind today’s dystopian headlines. As a writer, I’m interested in topics ranging from AI’s impact on labor to startups nobody asked for. My prior work includes bylines in Jacobin, Verso, and Blue Labyrinths. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Forbes, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, Time, The Nation, Mother Jones, The Verge, and Wired. I grew up in Michigan, attending Central Michigan University as well as Ball State University, where I earned a master of music. I now live in Brooklyn with my girlfriend and our cat Ziti. On weekends, you can find me hunched over a cold pint arguing geopolitics with the other transplants. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()