Wichita State dining announced Thursday that the Starship robot delivery service has ended. 

The service was introduced in fall 2023 due to a partnership with Starship Technologies. The delivery robots, known around campus as “Dave,” were a way for students to grab campus eats without having to travel to restaurants in the Rhatigan Student Center or Braeburn Square.

The change comes from the Starship program. On June 4, the company announced on its website that it would be withdrawing over 1,200 robots from across the country’s campuses, including Wichita State, to focus on retail grocery chains. 

According to Senior Director of the dining program Jamie Kraisinger, it was “a very quick change with Starship.” 

“There wasn’t a lot of (notice), which came to a little bit of a surprise by us, but we made the transition work,” Kraisinger said. 

Kraisinger said they were told by Starship on Tuesday that the company would be coming to collect the robots through an official letter of notice, and by Wednesday morning, Starship was on campus to take the robots. 

Kraisinger was responsible for the original implementation of the program, and said the sudden withdrawal was disappointing. 

“Starship was something I was very proud of as I launched it, and it’s been a little bit of a disappointment,” she said.  

With Starship gone, Kraisinger said she’s focusing her attention on finding alternative pick-up and delivery services before the semester starts. 

“I think there’s other options that we can look at as we get situated, and work through this new information,” Kraisinger said.