CARI was started at the University of Notre Dame by engineering students Patrick McFarland and Davide W. Thompson after big-city delivery apps and campus robots kept failing the last 200 yards. We set out to build the campus-native service we wished existed.
Patrick McFarland & Davide W. Thompson
Students who turned cold, missed deliveries into a campus-built platform.
Countless deliveries to the dorms arrived late, cold, or not at all. City-first apps, and even the delivery robots that followed, weren't designed for quads, residence halls, or the way students move. The success rate wasn't just low; it was effectively zero.
CARI began as a fix built from the inside out: engineer a service that respects campus terrain, culture, and the feeling of a handoff at your door.
Every delivery is a micro-interaction. When it's engineered for familiarity, it builds trust, not friction. CARI matchmakes customers with couriers who feel warm: classmates in shared clubs, majors, grade levels, or mutual circles.
Abroad, Patrick and Davide saw how London thrived on bikes and mopeds with Deliveroo. A dense European city isn't far from a university campus: tight routes, no-car zones, and lots of people on foot. CARI embraced bikes and e-scooters because they simply work on campus terrain.
The MVP launched with dorm-run restaurants (soggy quesadillas included). Seventy students ordered opening night anyway. Feedback loops with classmates shaped every upgrade: what made it stick wasn't just speed, it was seeing a friend show up with your food.
Success at Notre Dame confirmed a belief: Gen Z problems deserve Gen Z solutions. Universities across the country are joining the CARI waitlist because they want food access that feels safe, familiar, and built for their students' lives.
CARI turns delivery into a campus connection, one warm handoff at a time.
