Delivery robot ignores red light, hits Tallinn bus and drives off

What happened

A Starship Technologies delivery robot is reported to have ignored a red light and entered a junction in Tallinn on Monday, 26 October 2026. It collided with a city bus there, according to the transport operator Tallinn Transport (TLT), which posted video of the accident on social media. TLT said the bus driver and other road users had confirmed the robot's failure to stop. To avoid hitting the robot, the driver braked hard, and several passengers standing inside the bus fell. TLT said up to nine people were injured. The impact threw the robot across the road, after which it left the scene.

Response from the operator and TLT

Pepe Aaviksoo of Starship Technologies said the company was aware of the accident and had contacted the police. Starship also opened an internal investigation to establish the exact circumstances. Aaviksoo said the accident was extremely regrettable and that safety is the company's top priority. TLT board member Andrei Novikov said the robot had, in effect, fled the scene, since it simply drove on after the collision. He made the remark to Estonian public radio.

How the robots work and their record

Starship robots can carry up to 15 kilograms over a distance of five kilometers. In Estonia they operate fully autonomously on pavements, delivering groceries, meals and parcels, and they use several cameras to monitor their surroundings. Aaviksoo said such incidents are rare and that the robots operate in seven countries. According to him, they have completed 11 million autonomous deliveries and covered 24 million kilometers. He added that the robots had already passed this junction successfully more than 4,000 times. Starship robots have also been tested on public roads in Germany, including trials with Rewe and MediaMarkt.

Earlier incidents and open questions

The last previously reported collision between a delivery robot and a bus took place in April 2020.

The reports do not explain why the robot did not stop at the red light. Starship's internal investigation is meant to establish the exact circumstances, and the police have been informed. The figure of up to nine injured comes from the transport company, and the reports give no breakdown of the injuries. Most details of the robot's behaviour come from TLT's account and the bus driver's confirmation relayed by TLT.