Cloudy with a chance of Big Macs: McDonald’s and Meituan launch drone route in Shanghai

McDonald’s and Meituan, the Chinese food-delivery giant, have teamed up to launch the country’s first exclusive catering brand drone delivery route in Shanghai's West Bund area. The service kicked off last week, allowing people walking or exercising along the riverside to have their fast-food orders delivered directly to designated kiosks via air.

The 3.1km delivery path, originating from a McDonald’s restaurant in Xuhui district, is aimed at serving office workers and tourists in the area. Meituan's custom-made drones can handle a maximum payload of 2.4kg and complete waterfront deliveries in as little as 10 minutes. This marks China's growing focus on urban logistics technology as part of its "low-altitude economy" push for tech innovation.

Meituan has been aggressively expanding its drone business, surpassing 900,000 commercial drone delivery orders in May. The new route is part of a larger "aerial delivery network" planned by Meituan to connect landmarks in Xuhui, with nearly 20 catering brands currently using the service and the number expected to surpass 40 by year-end.