Skip to main content

The context you need, when you need it

When news breaks, you need to understand what actually matters — and what to do about it. At Vox, our mission to help you make sense of the world has never been more vital. But we can’t do it on our own.

We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today?

Join now

Amazon’s newest delivery option for Prime members: Inside their car

At launch, customers will need to have a later-model vehicle from select carmakers like Volvo and GMC.

A Volvo V60 in a car showroom
A Volvo V60 in a car showroom
This Volvo V60 is the kind of car that can accept Amazon delivery.
Robert Hradil / Getty
Jason Del Rey
Jason Del Rey has been a business journalist for 15 years and has covered Amazon, Walmart, and the e-commerce industry for the last decade. He was a senior correspondent at Vox.

Amazon will deliver to your office, a nearby locker, or even inside your front door. Now, Prime members can add their car as a delivery destination, too.

The online retail giant, which continues to act with the belief that Prime customers will trade more than a bit of privacy for convenience, has started to roll out an in-car delivery option for Prime customers with eligible 2015 or newer Chevy, Buick, GMC, Cadillac or Volvo vehicles.

Amazon believes the option could appeal to customers who don’t want packages left out on their porch or those who need to receive an order while away from home. The vehicles need to be parked in a publicly accessible area that is in the vicinity of an address in a customer’s Amazon address book to qualify for this delivery option.

Delivery people get GPS and license plate information in order to find the right vehicle. When they request access to the car, Amazon says it confirms that they have the right package and are at the right location before the vehicle gets unlocked. Customers receive notifications when the package is on the way and after it has been delivered.

Amazon said the program is available to customers in 37 metro areas around the U.S. Customers must have active OnStar or Volvo On Call accounts for their vehicles in order to qualify for delivery.

The in-car delivery launch comes six months after Amazon announced a new delivery option that would allow customers to select in-home delivery for certain orders. That program, dubbed Amazon Key, requires Prime members to purchase eligible digital locks and video cameras before they can choose in-home deliveries.

The in-car option, however, requires no special hardware. But it does require giving up a certain level of privacy to Amazon in exchange for added convenience. American consumers have indicated over and over again that they are willing to make that trade.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

More in Technology

Podcasts
Are humanoid robots all hype?Are humanoid robots all hype?
Podcast
Podcasts

AI is making them better — but they’re not going to be doing your chores anytime soon.

By Avishay Artsy and Sean Rameswaram
Future Perfect
The old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemicThe old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemic
Future Perfect

Glycol vapors, explained.

By Shayna Korol
Future Perfect
Elon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wantsElon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wants
Future Perfect

It’s not about who wins. It’s about the dirty laundry you air along the way.

By Sara Herschander
Life
Why banning kids from AI isn’t the answerWhy banning kids from AI isn’t the answer
Life

What kids really need in the age of artificial intelligence.

By Anna North
Culture
Anthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque messAnthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque mess
Culture

“Your AI monster ate all our work. Now you’re trying to pay us off with this piece of garbage that doesn’t work.”

By Constance Grady
Future Perfect
Some deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapySome deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapy
Future Perfect

A medical field that almost died is quietly fixing one disease at a time.

By Bryan Walsh