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Mercado Livre Expands Automation in Distribution Centers, Adds 125 Robots to Operations, and Promises to Accelerate Delivery Cycle, Reduce Timelines, and Maintain Hiring Expansion in Brazil.
Mercado Livre presented a new batch of 125 robots dedicated to product sorting in its distribution centers in Cajamar (SP) on Wednesday, the 24th.
According to the company, the machines can handle up to 105,000 items per day and shorten the processing cycle for orders with multiple items by 25% — the equivalent of 1 hour less in preparing each order.
Automation Accelerates Product Sorting
The equipment operates in the consolidation phase: when a customer buys two or more products stored in different areas, the robot traverses the path, collects the items, and delivers them for packaging.
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The operation occupies 670 m² and expands the window for same-day deliveries.
“The robots arrive to bring greater speed in order processing,” said Luiz Vergueiro, senior director of Logistics.
According to him, the adoption of this technology is unprecedented in the country.
Employee Reallocation and New Hires
The company claims that automation does not eliminate jobs.
Instead of layoffs, teams are shifted to higher-value roles — such as process monitoring and order management.
For 2025, the forecast is to hire between 12,000 and 13,000 people in Brazil, with an emphasis on logistics operations, said Fernando Yunes, senior vice president and head of the business in the country.
Automation Park Now Totals Almost 500 Robots
With the new batch, the automation park now totals almost 500 robots in different activities.
Before the “sorting robots,” Mercado Livre already operated a system where shelves are brought to the operators — a model known in the industry as “shelves to person,” implemented in Cajamar since 2024, with more than 100 AMRs in the pilot.
More Accessible Free Shipping Boosts Sales
Logistical acceleration follows the reduction of the minimum amount for free shipping from R$ 79 to R$ 19, a decision announced in June.
According to executives, the change has increased the sales pace: for the period of June compared to June of the previous year, the volume of units sold grew by 34%, directly linked to the new shipping threshold.
Logistics Optimizes Truck Usage
The strategy seeks to gain scale without unnecessarily stressing the network.
The company describes a more efficient use of vehicles, filling empty spaces with less urgent packages.
“We have to send the truck anyway, so we fill spaces with packages that are not urgent,” Vergueiro stated while explaining how route design and deadline prioritization help to dilute costs and sustain productivity.
More Speed for Same-Day Deliveries
By reducing one hour in processing, the operation extends the cutoff time for customers to complete purchases and receive items on the same day.
In demonstrations to the press, the executive mentioned that the cutoff window can be extended by about one hour in areas served by same-day delivery.
Investments and Reach in Brazil
Brazil remains the group’s main market.
In 2025, Mercado Livre announced R$ 34 billion in investments in the country.
On the operational front, the network consists of dozens of distribution centers and speed indexes that the company highlights as differentiators: 56% of purchases arrive within 24 hours in capitals, a proportion that rises to 73% in São Paulo, according to data presented at the Mercado Livre Experience 2025.
Strategy Unites Robots and Shipping Policy
Competition in e-commerce has intensified the race for price and delivery time. At the same time, the cut in free shipping to R$ 19 increases the volume of low-ticket items circulating in the network.
In this scenario, the role of sorting robots is to reduce internal movements and speed up order consolidation, mitigating the operational impacts of the demand surge and opening up space for more same-day orders — without sacrificing service quality.
With the combination of automation and aggressive shipping policy, the shopping experience is expected to be faster and more predictable; the question remains: what matters more to you when continuing to shop, shipping cost or delivery speed?
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