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While venture capitalists salivate over sentient transport trucks and robot SUVs that can safely navigate a Boston blizzard, some of the smartest self-driving engineers are making progress flipping chicken sandwiches.

Drivers at grocery delivery startup Imperfect Foods Inc. have voted to unionize, an apparent victory for organized labor as it steps up efforts to make inroads into California’s fast-growing startups. The company said it would challenge the results.

Despite the ongoing popularity of online shopping, there is a dearth of “design support” for urban delivery needs, according to Edward McCormack, research associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Washington.

Earlier this month, local letter carriers were told to delay delivering mail in order to save money for the United States Postal Service, a direction that apparently came from top federal officials to mail carriers throughout the country.

Instacart Inc. more than doubled the number of people who pick and deliver groceries to customers over the past few weeks and said it will add an additional 250,000 in the next two months, a response to unprecedented demand for the service.

California has authorized the testing and commercial use of light-duty autonomous delivery vehicles on public roads.

Yandex NV, Russia’s largest internet company, is rolling out a suitcase-sized robot that will attempt to deliver take-out despite Moscow’s winter snowstorms.

NEW YORK — Walmart is rolling out a grocery delivery subscription service this fall as it races to gain an advantage in the competitive fresh food business.

Texas retailer H-E-B will be implementing a self-driving vehicle for delivery service in San Antonio this year. H-E-B will use one autonomous van with driverless technology to serve customers near Olmos Park for a store location just north of downtown.

Domino’s Pizza Inc. plans to test unmanned pizza delivery in Houston later this year. The chain, known as a technology leader in the restaurant industry, is teaming with Nuro, a Bay Area robotics startup run by two former Google employees.