Zipline says businesses are piling onto its drone app as it heads to Austin and Cleveland

Previously

Zipline began Walmart drone deliveries in Mesquite, Texas in April 2025, free at launch (Part 1). By April 2026 it said customers near Rowlett could order from 16 brands and that it made "thousands of orders a day" across Dallas-Fort Worth. Those figures were Zipline's own (Part 2).

July 2026 — Zipline says it is expanding beyond Texas. Here's what changed since Part 2 (April 2026), what it cost, and what went wrong.

Cost and outcome (as of July 2026)

Marketplace growth: businesses offering delivery through the Zipline app grew 13X in the first half of 2026, per Zipline. (Zipline)
Deliveries: more than 2.5 million commercial deliveries, one million of them in the last year; about 70% of flights in the U.S., per Zipline. (Zipline)
Safety claim: more than 135 million commercial autonomous miles "without a safety incident," per Zipline. (Zipline)
Revenue, price to customers and cost per delivery: not disclosed.

What Zipline announced

Zipline said it would launch its first U.S. healthcare home-delivery service with Cleveland Clinic in July, starting in the suburb of Beachwood, with prescriptions delivered "at no additional cost." Over time, the Cleveland program is to add lab samples, medically tailored meals, medical and surgical supplies, and hospital-at-home materials moving between Cleveland Clinic facilities. In Austin, Zipline plans food and retail deliveries "in the coming months," which it says will arrive "in as little as five minutes."

The release also named partners, without saying how much of the 13X figure they account for. Wonder said it will use Zipline at 50 of its upcoming Texas food halls, and Little Caesars is expanding Zipline delivery from five locations to 65, the release said. Zipline didn't say how many businesses were on the app at the start or end of the period. The release also says Zipline "operates more flights per day than major U.S. airlines," without giving a daily flight count.

Who it hired

Sendil Palani joins as chief financial officer after 17 years at Tesla, most recently as vice president of finance. Kevin Vosen, chief legal officer at Waymo for nearly seven years, becomes chief legal officer. Allen Penn, who helped grow Uber and led global operations at Uber Eats, is head of commercial.

"Zipline's next chapter is about making its experience accessible to communities worldwide while continuing our track record of safe, trusted operations," Vosen said. Palani said: "I am excited to join at such a transformational moment."

The safety claim

Zipline says 135 million miles without a safety incident is "the same as driving on all roads in America 32 times, which would result in more than 600 crashes, more than 100 injuries and at least 1 fatality." The company didn't define "safety incident." In April it used a narrower phrase, "without a serious injury." Zipline's release also credits its medical deliveries with saving "more than 60K lives." We have not checked that figure; it is outside the scope of this series, which covers U.S. home delivery.

What's changed

In April 2026, Zipline's story was one Texas metro. By July, it announced two new metros, a health system partner and three senior hires. Its mileage claim rose from 130 million to 135 million, and its stated delivery total passed 2.5 million. For the first time in this series, Zipline is pitching U.S. health care deliveries alongside meals and Walmart goods.

What went wrong

A ratio with no base. "13X" doesn't say how many businesses that is.
Undefined safety term. Zipline hasn't said what counts as a "safety incident."
Plans, not launches. Wonder's 50 food halls are "upcoming," and Little Caesars' move to 65 locations is due "in the coming months." Austin had no launch date.
Still no prices. No public figures on what customers or partners pay.
What we don't know yet: revenue, cost per delivery, and how many U.S. households can order today.

Our follow-up question for Zipline

How does Zipline define a "safety incident," and how many parachute deployments has its U.S. fleet had?

Later developments (added Oct. 2026)

On July 26, 2026, a Zipline drone flying Walmart deliveries deployed its parachute and came down on a residential street in Greenville, Texas, about three feet from a parked pickup, DroneXL reported, citing a resident's Facebook post and photos. Nobody was hurt, and a Walmart employee covered the aircraft for recovery. DroneXL said the parachute is Zipline's published last-resort safety system. We found no Zipline statement on the descent. (DroneXL)
On Aug. 3, 2026, Cleveland Clinic said its first Zipline prescription deliveries were made "last week" in and around Beachwood, within five miles of its Beachwood Administrative Campus, at "no extra cost for patients." Controlled substances will not be carried "at this time." "This drone delivery program is an example of how we can use technology to help patients receive important medications quickly, safely and efficiently," said Bill Peacock, Executive Vice President and Chief of Operations. (Cleveland Clinic)

Sources

Zipline, “Zipline Accelerates U.S. Growth with 13X Marketplace Expansion, New Leadership Hires, and Launches in Austin and Cleveland,” July 14, 2026. zipline.com
Cleveland Clinic, “Cleveland Clinic Launches Drone Delivery Program for Prescription Medications,” Aug. 3, 2026. newsroom.clevelandclinic.org
Haye Kesteloo, DroneXL, “Zipline Walmart Drone Parachutes Into Greenville, Texas Street, Landing Feet From A Parked Truck,” July 27, 2026. dronexl.co
Zipline, “Zipline Scales Autonomous Delivery in North Texas as Demand Surges and New Brands Join,” April 20, 2026. zipline.com
Earlier in this series: Part 1. /case/zipline-drone-delivery-mesquite
Earlier in this series: Part 2. /case/zipline-drone-delivery-rowlett

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