SF Express

SF is a provider of complex express logistics services.

History

2025: Delivery Trucks Commissioned Without Drivers

Logistics company SF Express has launched 10,000 robotic vans in the subway of the Chinese city of Shenzhen. Unmanned vehicles manufactured by Neolix are capable of moving without human participation and carrying up to 500 kg of cargo. This was reported by Nikkei Asia on October 22, 2025.

Robotic vans distribute the cargo in volume up to three cubic meters. As part of a large-scale experiment at one of the metro stations, unmanned vehicles deliver cargo to trains starting at 8 pm. By this time, the station has fewer passengers.

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Фото: Nikkei Asian Review

Vans run in the same space as people using the subway. Robotic vehicles are configured to minimize the likelihood of accidents. They automatically stop when obstacles are detected in the path.

The devices issue a voice warning for pedestrians about the need to maintain a distance of at least two meters. Vans travel at a speed slightly faster than pedestrians along strictly defined trajectories. Cargo is transferred by employees to trains, which then transport them to underground logistics centers.

This approach optimizes the use of free space in urban transport infrastructure. Cargo is delivered faster due to the use of underground transport during less busy hours.

Beijing-based Neolix, which has developed robofurgons used in Shenzhen, intends to increase their number in ten years. It is planned to expand from 10 thousand to 10 million units of unmanned vehicles. Delivery vehicles will improve at the level of algorithms and will work faster.

Over time, robotic vans will drive drivers out of the logistics market. In China, the e-commerce market is highly developed, and competition in logistics is very high. Automation of vehicles can provide maximum savings for market participants by reducing costs.^[1]

2020: Blockchain Rollout for Drug and Food Supplies

In mid-April 2020, the largest Chinese logistics company SF Express began using a blockchain-based tracking system to protect essential supplies such as medicines and food during the coronavirus pandemic. Read more here.