DoorDash, Inc. operates a commerce platform connecting merchants, consumers, and dashers in the United States and internationally. Its marketplaces include DoorDash Marketplace, Wolt Marketplace, and Deliveroo Marketplace, offering services such as customer acquisition, demand generation, order fulfillment, merchandising, payment processing, and customer support. The company also provides membership programs DashPass, Wolt+, and Deliveroo Plus, advertising services, and white-label delivery fulfillment, along with tools for merchants to manage online ordering, branded apps, reservations, in-store dining, and customer relationships. Formerly Palo Alto Delivery Inc., it changed its name to DoorDash, Inc. in 2015, was founded in 2013, and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.
Why is DoorDash, Inc. Class A Common Stock (DASH) moving?
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DoorDash expands retail reach and AI tools as Uber builds a bigger rival
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Retail partnerships keep stacking up DoorDash added Costco nationwide in the U.S. and across Canada, plus Macy's, Anthropologie, VF brands, Barnes & Noble, Kohl's, Gap and Skims. Each big retailer puts more stores and products on its app, so more orders flow through its network and it depends less on restaurants.
This is the period's dominant new force: a wave of major retail partners that grows order volume and diversifies revenue.
New AI tools for Dashers and restaurants DoorDash launched DashBuddy, an AI helper that answers Dashers' questions by text, and DashOS, which unifies restaurant customer data. Early tests lifted reservations over 15%. These tools aim to get couriers working faster and help merchants sell more, supporting efficiency and growth.
New AI products are a fresh driver of future efficiency and merchant stickiness, not previously reported.
Advertising and delivery reach keep widening DoorDash partnered with Circana to prove its ads drive real extra sales, joined a retail-media showcase, and became the NHL's official delivery partner. It also started auto parts delivery and a Lowe's drone pilot. All of this brings new customers and new ad revenue.
These new deals broaden demand sources beyond food and strengthen the fast-growing ads business.
Uber keeps buying scale to close the gap Uber agreed to buy catering platform ezCater for $2.3 billion, adding workplace and event food ordering to its Delivery Hero deal. DoorDash still leads U.S. food delivery, but a bigger, better-funded Uber could pressure its share and pricing over time.
This is the main counterweight this period: a rival consolidating scale that could erode DoorDash's market position.
DoorDash Partners With Costco for On-Demand Delivery Across Canada
DoorDash has entered a new partnership with Costco to offer on-demand delivery services across Canada, letting Costco members there order groceries and general merchandise through DoorDash for delivery directly to their homes. The agreement extends DoorDash's retail delivery footprint beyond restaurants by adding a major warehouse club chain to its platform, and the Canada-wide Costco rollout is only one part of the broader DoorDash story. DoorDash runs a delivery platform linking households with retailers and couriers across multiple categories, and the company carries a US$83.9b market cap. Costco brings a high-frequency, membership-based shopper into the DoorDash ecosystem, which can deepen engagement beyond takeaway meals, while the tie-up adds grocery and bulk order volume in Canada that can help spread fixed costs in logistics, tech and support across more transactions. The clearest early signal for investors will be how quickly Costco orders ramp on the DoorDash platform in Canada and whether those customers become repeat users across categories, along with disclosed trends in grocery and retail order frequency and member adoption of services such as DashPass.
DASH · Demand · Positive DoorDash adds Costco as a major warehouse-club retail partner across Canada, expanding its non-restaurant delivery footprint and order volume.
COST · Demand · Positive Costco members in Canada can now order groceries and merchandise via DoorDash, extending its delivery reach and adding order volume.
Uber to Acquire ezCater for $2.3 Billion in All-Cash Deal
Uber Technologies has agreed to acquire ezCater, a major U.S. catering and workplace-meals platform, in an all-cash transaction valued at $2.3 billion. The deal is aimed at expanding Uber Eats into the large-order catering market while strengthening Uber for Business, which is trusted by more than 200,000 companies globally, and ezCater, which lets businesses order from more than 140,000 restaurants nationwide. The transaction is expected to close in the coming months, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. ezCater generated more than $2.5 billion in gross bookings during the trailing 12 months, with bookings growing at a high-teens percentage rate year over year, and its average order value exceeds $400; Uber expects the business to be margin accretive. The acquisition could strengthen Uber's competitive position against DoorDash in the U.S. food-delivery market by giving it a stronger foothold in workplace catering and large group orders, a segment DoorDash is also actively targeting after launching expanded workplace catering offerings in April 2026.
UBER · Capital · Positive Uber agreed to acquire ezCater for $2.3 billion in an all-cash deal expected to be margin accretive and expand Uber Eats and Uber for Business.
DASH · Competition · Negative Uber's acquisition of ezCater strengthens Uber's workplace catering and large-group order foothold against DoorDash, which is also targeting that segment.
Serve Robotics Cuts 2026 Revenue Outlook to $9-$10 Million
Serve Robotics Inc. lowered its 2026 revenue outlook to $9-$10 million from $26 million, citing declining second-quarter delivery revenues and the removal of a substantial second-half increase in Uber delivery volumes assumed in earlier guidance. The company attributed the Uber volume decline largely to differences in fleet coordination, merchant integration and the operating model, while customer and merchant demand remained steady. To align spending with the revised plan, Serve Robotics cut its 2026 non-GAAP operating expense guidance to $140-$150 million from $160-$170 million and planned capital expenditures to approximately $15-$17 million from about $25 million, through headcount discipline, more efficient deployment infrastructure spending and tighter discretionary expenses. Total second-quarter revenues rose 9% sequentially to approximately $3.2 million as other channels more than offset lower delivery revenues, with DoorDash deliveries up nearly 50% sequentially and recurring revenues accounting for more than half of the total. Serve Robotics also said it expects software revenues to soften in the second half of 2026, and noted its shares have declined 60.2% over the past year compared with a 22.4% fall for the industry.
DoorDash Air Unveils Drone Delivery System, Pilot to Start in Northern California
DoorDash unveiled its purpose-built autonomous aircraft powered by DoorDash Air and outlined plans for an end-to-end drone delivery system designed to scale for all local businesses. Pilot drone deliveries will begin in Northern California in partnership with national restaurant brands including Chipotle Mexican Grill and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, along with local restaurant Momo N Curry. DoorDash said about 80% of today's typical restaurant orders are light and small enough for the aircraft to carry safely, and that initial tests showed delivery times from restaurant to consumer's door averaging under five minutes. The system runs on DoorDash's Autonomous Delivery Platform, the same platform coordinating Dashers, the Dot ground robot, and third-party autonomous delivery partners, and the company said it has already completed hundreds of thousands of lifetime autonomous deliveries. Harrison Shih, Head of DoorDash Air, said the team started with how local businesses actually operate rather than with the aircraft, building ground infrastructure, loading systems, packaging, and order data first.
Robotics & Physical AI › Civil Drones & UAV ▲Technology
Robotics & Physical AI › Autonomous Trucking & Delivery ▲Technology
Advanced Air Mobility (eVTOL) › Cargo & Delivery Drone Systems Technology
DASH · Technology · Positive DoorDash unveiled its purpose-built autonomous aircraft and end-to-end drone delivery system, with pilot deliveries starting in Northern California.
CMG · Demand · Positive Chipotle is named as a national restaurant brand partner in DoorDash Air's pilot drone delivery program, a new delivery channel for its orders.
QSR · Demand · Positive Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, owned by Restaurant Brands International, is named as a national restaurant brand partner in the DoorDash Air drone delivery pilot.
Momo N Curry · Demand · Positive Momo N Curry is named as a local restaurant partner participating in the DoorDash Air drone delivery pilot.
DoorDash Adds Macy's, Anthropologie, VF Brands to Retail Marketplace
DoorDash is expanding its retail Marketplace with new partnerships across apparel, beauty, and home, adding Macy's, Anthropologie, The North Face, Vans, and Timberland to the platform. Macy's apparel, beauty, and home assortment is available starting this month with delivery from more than 350 stores nationwide, while Anthropologie's assortment spans more than 220 stores and the VF Corporation brands The North Face, Vans, and Timberland together cover more than 350 stores nationwide. DoorDash is also launching a new return offering that lets customers send items back without a box or label, with the money returned to their pocket. Chief Revenue Officer Shanna Prevé said the expansion delivers on the idea of the mall in your pocket, with Macy's or Anthropologie available in as little as an hour. The Macy's partnership extends a relationship dating back to 2020, when DoorDash began powering Macy's first-party delivery through Drive On-Demand, and DoorDash will join Macy's for the first time in the milestone 100th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with a new float, Dashing All the Way by DoorDash.
DASH · Demand · Positive DoorDash expands its retail Marketplace with new merchant partnerships (Macy's, Anthropologie, VF brands) and a new returns offering, adding product selection and orders to its platform.
M · Demand · Positive Macy's apparel, beauty, and home assortment joins DoorDash Marketplace with delivery from 350+ stores, extending its 2020 delivery relationship and adding a new sales channel.
URBN · Demand · Positive Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters' brand, is added to DoorDash Marketplace with assortment from 220+ stores, giving it a new delivery sales channel.
VFC · Demand · Positive VF Corporation's The North Face, Vans, and Timberland brands join DoorDash Marketplace across 350+ stores, adding a new retail distribution channel.
DoorDash Launches DashBuddy AI Assistant and New In-App Tools for Dashers
DoorDash announced new AI tools designed to help Dashers get started and get more from every dash. The centerpiece is DashBuddy, an AI-powered assistant that answers Dashers' questions by text message over SMS without requiring a call to support, and it is live across the U.S. and Canada today. More than 200,000 Dashers have already used DashBuddy, which has resolved around 95% of questions from Dashers signing up or preparing for their first dash, and DoorDash says Dashers who talk to DashBuddy before their first dash are more likely to complete one within just three days following their chat. DoorDash is also testing a Voice Mode so Dashers can have a call with DashBuddy instead of texting. Separately, the company is rolling out new AI-powered tools directly in the Dasher app across the U.S., letting Dashers ask in their own words when and where to dash and receive personalized recommendations.
DoorDash Launches DashOS to Unify Restaurant Customer Data
DoorDash introduced DashOS, a single platform that connects its products across Marketplace, direct ordering, reservations, loyalty, guest management and marketing so restaurants can turn disconnected customer interactions into one relationship. The company said early tests of AI-powered personalized recommendations increased total reservations by more than 15%, while SevenRooms marketing tools, now using blinded, aggregated DoorDash Marketplace insights, have helped restaurants generate more than $150 million in sales this year. DoorDash said consumers enrolled through its omnichannel loyalty program order 1.8 times as often and spend about 1.75 times as much per consumer compared with those who have not opted in, and that SevenRooms Voice AI has helped restaurants generate, on average, more than $10,000 in monthly revenue. DoorDash is deepening integrations with POS and middleware providers including Clover from Fiserv, Qu, Checkmate, Chowly, Deliverect, Stream and Urban Piper, and beginning in 2027 plans to give 80,000+ restaurants on those systems more ways to use SevenRooms guest profiles and Online Ordering, In-Store Rewards and Omnichannel Loyalty. Parisa Sadrzadeh, VP of Strategy and Operations at DoorDash, said the platform gives restaurants a direct line to customers for the first time, and Marco Montevago, Manager at Italian Brothers Restaurant, said DashOS helps the restaurant better understand its guests without adding another system to manage.
Artificial Intelligence › AI Applications & Copilots ▲Technology
DASH · Technology · Positive DoorDash launched DashOS, a new platform unifying restaurant customer data across its products, with early AI personalization tests lifting reservations over 15%.
FISV · Demand · Positive DoorDash is deepening integrations with POS providers including Clover from Fiserv, expanding use of its systems by restaurants.
DoorDash Unveils Text Ordering, Drone Delivery and DashOS at Dash Forward 2026
DoorDash announced a slate of new products at its Dash Forward 2026 event, including text-based ordering, a custom drone delivery system called DoorDash Air, a restaurant growth platform called DashOS, and new AI tools for its delivery workers. U.S. consumers on iOS can join a waitlist starting today to try ordering by text in beta, an extension of the company's in-app Ask DoorDash assistant. DoorDash Air will pilot first in Northern California with partners including Chipotle and Popeyes, and the company says about 80% of today's typical DoorDash restaurant orders are light and small enough for the aircraft to carry safely, with initial tests showing delivery times from restaurant to customer door averaging under 5 minutes. The company is also bringing brands including Macy's, Anthropologie, The North Face, Vans and Timberland to its marketplace, and said Dasher Returns, which charges consumers a flat $7.99 fee per eligible return, is live in select cities and expected to roll out nationwide in November. DashOS connects DoorDash's tools across Marketplace, direct ordering, reservations, loyalty, guest management and marketing, while the new DashBuddy assistant has already been used by over 200,000 Dashers and has resolved about 95% of questions from Dashers signing up or preparing for their first dash. DoorDash also introduced a connector for corporate ordering built on the Model Context Protocol, with companies able to join the beta waitlist starting September 30.
Artificial Intelligence › AI Applications & Copilots ▲Technology
Advanced Air Mobility (eVTOL) › Cargo & Delivery Drone Systems Technology
Robotics & Physical AI › Autonomous Trucking & Delivery Technology
DASH · Technology · Positive DoorDash unveiled new products including text ordering, DoorDash Air drone delivery, DashOS, and AI tools for Dashers.
DASH · Demand · Positive DoorDash is adding brands like Macy's, Anthropologie, The North Face, Vans and Timberland to its marketplace, expanding merchant selection.
Atomic Raises $12.5M Series A to Build AI Control System for Physical Goods Companies
Atomic, the AI-native supply chain planning platform founded by former Tesla supply chain leaders, has raised a $12.5 million Series A led by Klass Capital and Madrona. Adrian Schauer of Klass Capital and Matt McIlwain of Madrona join Atomic's board alongside Jon McNeill, co-founder and CEO of DVx Ventures and the former President of Tesla, whose firm incubated Atomic. The company was founded by Michael Rossiter, Neal Suidan, and Jeff Goodrich, who together led Sales and Operations Planning and planning at Tesla through the Model 3 ramp-up and built a 50-person planning engineering organization. Atomic already automates 90% of purchasing across hundreds of sites for DoorDash's DashMart business, which migrated to Atomic in about three months with feature parity and zero business disruption, and Good Chop, HelloFresh's meat box subscription business, used Atomic to reduce inventory on hand from eight or nine weeks to four while more than doubling revenue. Atomic will use the funding to extend its platform from planning and decision support into a control system that connects a company's business objectives to its daily operating decisions, with AI agents extending the capability of human teammates, and to support larger enterprise deployments of its Nucleus AI agent platform.
Artificial Intelligence › Agentic AI & Autonomous Workflows ▲Capital
DASH · Technology · Positive DoorDash's DashMart business uses Atomic's AI supply chain platform, automating 90% of purchasing across hundreds of sites.
HFG.XETRA · Technology · Positive HelloFresh's Good Chop business used Atomic to cut inventory from 8-9 weeks to 4 while more than doubling revenue.
Costco Reports Q4 Sales of US$93,873 Million and Full-Year Sales of US$297,247 Million
Costco Wholesale reported fourth-quarter sales of US$93,873 million and full-year sales of US$297,247 million in late September 2026, with both revenue and net income rising compared with the prior year. The results underscored the continued strength of Costco's fee-based membership model, which helped lift earnings even as operating costs remained under pressure. The company also launched nationwide on the DoorDash Marketplace, broadening same-day delivery access to all U.S. warehouses as part of its digital and omnichannel push. Costco's narrative projects US$363.2 billion in revenue and US$11.6 billion in earnings by 2029, requiring 7.4% yearly revenue growth and a US$2.8 billion earnings increase from US$8.8 billion today. Some of the most optimistic analysts were already projecting revenue near US$382 billion and earnings around US$12.6 billion by 2029, far more upbeat than consensus.
Lowe's launches drone delivery pilot with DoorDash and Wing
Lowe's is launching a drone delivery service in partnership with DoorDash and Alphabet's Wing, making it the first home improvement retailer to use unmanned aerial vehicles for e-commerce fulfillment. The service is available for select products as a pilot program at Lowe's store in Matthews, North Carolina, the company announced on Thursday. Lowe's said customers can receive a curated list of small products, including hand tools, paint supplies, tape, batteries and soap, in as fast as 20 minutes, with the service suited for items weighing up to 2.5 pounds. Customers access drone delivery through the DoorDash app, where Lowe's products are displayed, and select the drone delivery option during checkout. The move follows Home Depot's recent introduction of nationwide express same-day delivery from stores using DoorDash and its pool of on-demand drivers, as retailers push to meet growing customer expectations and compete with marketplaces like Amazon.
Costco Plans $7.5 Billion Fiscal 2027 Expansion With 33 New Warehouses
Costco Wholesale is expected to pay out about $7.5 billion in fiscal 2027 as it ramps up expansion after another successful quarter. The company aims to open 33 warehouses in the fiscal year, including five relocations, moving it closer to CEO Ron Vachris' longer-term objective of adding about 30 net new locations a year. Costco finished fiscal 2026 with 939 warehouses and spent $6.4 billion on capital projects for the year. Fourth quarter net sales were $93.87 billion, up 9.4 percent on a comparable sales basis, while net income was just under $3 billion, or $6.75 a diluted share. Costco ended the quarter with 42.3 million paid executive members and reported a renewal rate of 92.3% in the U.S. and Canada, and it is expanding its Uber Eats collaboration countrywide in the U.S. while rolling out DoorDash delivery across the country.
DoorDash to Pay $131.5M Over Underpaid NYC Delivery Workers
DoorDash has agreed to a $131.5 million settlement after New York City's Department of Consumer and Worker Protection found it underpaid more than 260,000 delivery workers, including some who were paid late or never paid at all. Of the total, $115.4 million goes back to workers, while the rest covers about $11.3 million in civil penalties, $4.3 million for a worker-driven compliance program and roughly $468,000 to run the payouts. DoorDash says the median payout will be around $48, with the average missed payment at just $7.70 and 65% of affected workers shorted by $1 or less, though Mayor Zohran Mamdani said upward of 27,000 workers will clear $1,000 and more than 4,000 will top $5,000. City officials called it the largest worker settlement in New York City history and the largest involving food delivery workers anywhere in the U.S., and the tab could still grow because DoorDash is still calculating what it owes for work done between June 29 and Nov. 29, with any back pay from that stretch carrying an extra 13.79% civil penalty. The agency found DoorDash excluded several categories of trip time and on-call time from the hours it paid for under a city law requiring app-based delivery workers to earn at least $22.13 an hour before tips, and DoorDash said in a statement, "Simply put, we screwed up," while insisting the mistakes were not intentional.
DASH · Regulation · Negative DoorDash agreed to a $131.5M settlement with NYC for underpaying 260,000+ delivery workers under the city's minimum-pay law, with potential additional back pay and penalties still accruing.
Alibaba Quick Commerce Revenue Jumps 45% to RMB53.3 Billion
Alibaba's China Quick Commerce revenues rose 45% year over year to RMB53.3 billion in the June 2026 quarter, driven by Freshippo and Taobao Instant Commerce, which also improved unit economics while holding market share on higher average order values and better fulfillment efficiency. Management expects Quick Commerce to eventually contribute around 30% of platform GMV, positioning it as a second growth curve, though overall profitability is not expected until fiscal 2029. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2027 revenues is $166.75 billion, implying 14.66% year-over-year growth, while the fiscal 2027 EPS consensus of $6.51 reflects a 2% upward revision over the past 30 days and projected growth of 67.35% from the prior year. Competition is intensifying: Amazon added 80 U.S. cities and towns in the second quarter of 2026 through Amazon Now, reaching more than 250 locations globally with gross sales and units sold up over 80% quarter over quarter, and DoorDash is expanding into grocery and retail, its fastest-growing marketplace category. BABA stock has fallen 20.6% year to date, lagging the Zacks Internet - Commerce industry's 3.4% gain, and trades at a forward 12-month Price/Earnings ratio of 16.09X versus the industry's 20.92X, with a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
9988.HK · Demand · Positive Alibaba's China Quick Commerce revenue jumped 45% YoY to RMB53.3 billion on Freshippo and Taobao Instant Commerce growth with improved unit economics
9988.HK · Capital · Positive Fiscal 2027 EPS consensus of $6.51 reflects a 2% upward revision over 30 days and 67.35% projected growth, with the stock trading at a discount 16.09X forward P/E
盒马鲜生 · Demand · Positive Freshippo is named as a driver of Alibaba's 45% YoY Quick Commerce revenue growth to RMB53.3 billion
AMZN · Competition · Negative Amazon Now expanded to 80 more US cities and 250+ global locations with gross sales and units up over 80% QoQ, intensifying quick-commerce competition against Alibaba
DASH · Competition · Negative DoorDash is expanding into grocery and retail, its fastest-growing marketplace category, adding competitive pressure on Alibaba's quick commerce
Costco Expands DoorDash and Uber Delivery Deals, Stays Out of Arms Race
Costco Wholesale announced a new partnership with DoorDash and a major extension of its relationship with Uber, vastly expanding its same-day delivery reach while still leaving it well behind rivals like Walmart and Amazon. The membership-based retailer's same-day delivery had until now consisted largely of teaming up with Instacart for very quick delivery of groceries and other essentials, while Costco typically handles two-day shipping itself. Costco's hold on its customers remains strong: 92.3% of members in the U.S. and Canada renewed last year, and net sales for the fiscal year ended in August hit $297.3 billion, nearly triple what they were a decade ago. Its e-commerce business is growing faster than store sales, with digitally-enabled sales up 20.9% in the recently ended fiscal year against a companywide comparable sales uptick of 8.4%. GlobalData managing director Neil Saunders said e-commerce is important to Costco but not the be-all and end-all, and that the retailer is well differentiated enough that it isn't as involved in the digital grocery battle Amazon and Walmart are fighting. Costco's low-margin model, with membership revenue roughly equivalent to net income most years and an average of about 4,000 items per store versus 100,000 at Walmart, is why it partners with other companies for same-day delivery rather than building its own infrastructure.
COST · Demand · Positive Costco expands same-day delivery reach via new DoorDash partnership and extended Uber deal, broadening its e-commerce offering to members.
DASH · Demand · Positive DoorDash lands a new partnership with Costco to handle same-day delivery of the retailer's goods.
UBER · Demand · Positive Uber secures a major extension of its delivery relationship with Costco, expanding its same-day delivery volume.
Costco Rolls Out Nationwide Same-Day Delivery via DoorDash
Costco Wholesale has rolled out nationwide same-day delivery across the U.S. through DoorDash for its members, an expansion that now covers all U.S. Costco warehouses. DoorDash will handle orders placed through its app and website, sourcing them from nearby Costco locations and sending them to customers. The arrangement puts more than 4,000 items per warehouse onto the DoorDash Marketplace, letting members buy groceries, Kirkland Signature products and seasonal items without a warehouse trip. The company's stated narrative leans on e-commerce growth, and the key proof point will be whether digital and same-day sales keep building on the 22.2% e-commerce comp performance cited in that narrative, alongside membership growth and renewal rates around the 90% to 92% range. Simply Wall St's analysis also cites a $1,083 fair value for Costco Wholesale.
COST · Demand · Positive Costco rolled out nationwide same-day delivery via DoorDash, expanding member access to 4,000+ items and supporting e-commerce growth.
DASH · Demand · Positive DoorDash won the nationwide Costco same-day delivery partnership, adding Costco's 4,000+ item catalog to its Marketplace.
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DoorDash Adds Costco Nationwide and NHL Partnership
DoorDash Inc. expanded its retail and sports presence Thursday with a nationwide Costco rollout and a multiyear partnership with the National Hockey League. Costco Wholesale Corp. is now available through DoorDash across all U.S. warehouses, expanding an existing global relationship between the two companies that already covers Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Iceland and Puerto Rico. Costco members can order more than 4,000 products, including groceries, household essentials, electronics, seasonal merchandise and Kirkland Signature products, by linking an active membership through the DoorDash app for same-day delivery. Separately, DoorDash became the NHL's exclusive Official On-Demand Delivery and Pick Up Partner in Canada and the U.S., beginning with the 2026-27 season and marking its first partnership with the league, with marketing rights across nationally televised games, the Stanley Cup Playoffs and major NHL events. DoorDash carries a Buy consensus rating and an average price forecast of $247.55, with recent bullish actions including Scotiabank's Sector Outperform initiation with a $275 price forecast, StoneX's Buy rating with a $295 forecast and Rosenblatt's Buy initiation with a $270 forecast.
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Costco Expands Same-Day Delivery via DoorDash and Uber
Costco is expanding its same-day delivery network through new and broadened partnerships with DoorDash and Uber as it looks to grow e-commerce sales and compete with retailers like Walmart and Target. DoorDash announced that Costco members can now order groceries, dry goods, household essentials and other products through the DoorDash app for fast delivery from their local store, extending an existing relationship between the companies in Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Iceland and Puerto Rico. Uber announced a major expansion of its Costco partnership to deliver products in 47 states, up from 17 states, with nearly 600 Costco locations now available on the Uber Eats app for on-demand and scheduled delivery. Costco is also available on Uber Eats in Canada, Mexico, Japan, Taiwan, France and Spain. The expansion of food and grocery delivery platforms into retail delivery underscores the rapid evolution of the parcel delivery market, where online sales now represent 16.5% of total retail sales and are growing at about 10% per year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, while alternative carriers now make up about 8.5% of the parcel freight market, up from 2.6% of parcel volume in 2021, according to The Colography Group.
DoorDash Buys Wonder's Grubhub Campus Dining for $300 Million
DoorDash is acquiring Wonder's Grubhub Campus Dining business for $300 million and investing another $125 million in Wonder's Series D round. The campus business operates at more than 450 colleges and universities, letting students order from campus dining facilities, pay with dining dollars, and schedule pickup, and DoorDash plans to extend the technology beyond campuses into stadiums, hotels and similar venues, with the transaction expected to close in the first half of 2027. The purchase is modest against DoorDash's scale: the company generated $742 million of free cash flow in the second quarter, up from $355 million a year earlier, while adjusted EBITDA reached $914 million, up 40%, on revenue of $4.45 billion and Marketplace GOV of $33.1 billion. Marketplace GOV rose 36% to $33.1 billion in the quarter while orders increased 27% to 970 million, and even excluding Deliveroo, GOV growth was still 23%. Wonder has expanded to 157 locations, more than quadrupling its footprint since early 2025, and plans to enter Texas in 2027, while DoorDash's second-quarter research and development expense rose to $535 million from $351 million a year earlier. DoorDash said the deal is strategically significant but unlikely by itself to materially change consolidated earnings, leaving the investment case dependent on scaling the campus platform into new venues.
Costco Reports Q4 September 24 With DoorDash Deal Too Late to Count
Costco reports fiscal fourth-quarter results after the close on Wednesday, September 24, 2026, and its same-day delivery tie-up with DoorDash went live after the quarter closed, so the new channel cannot contribute to reported sales or earnings. The quarter covers the roughly 16-week period ending in late August or early September, and management has disclosed no fee split, margin effect, or volume target for the partnership. Costco's digital business was already accelerating without it, with fiscal Q3 2026 digitally-enabled comparable sales of 21.5% and e-commerce site and app traffic up 37%, following 22.6% digital comps in Q2. Membership economics remain the moat: Q3 brought 82.9 million paid members, membership fees of $1.37 billion, up 10.7%, and a worldwide renewal rate of 89.7%. The stock enters the quarter at $893.93, down 7.01% over the past month, and trades at a P/E of 45x, with analysts carrying a target of $1,072.20.
COST · Capital · Neutral Q4 results due Sept 24 with DoorDash deal too late to count, no fee split or margin effect disclosed, and stock down 7% into the print at 45x P/E
DASH · Demand · Neutral DoorDash same-day delivery tie-up with Costco went live after the quarter closed, but no volume target or fee split was disclosed
Uber's $15 Billion Delivery Hero Buyout Clears Key Hurdle as Boards Back Offer
Delivery Hero's management and supervisory boards formally recommended on September 2, 2026, that shareholders accept Uber Technologies' takeover offer, moving the roughly $15 billion deal for the German food-delivery platform a step closer to completion. Under the agreement, Uber will pay €41.50 per share, implying an equity value of $14.8 billion, and Delivery Hero's second-largest shareholder, Prosus, has irrevocably committed to tender its 17% stake. The shareholder acceptance period runs until November 5. Uber already owned roughly 25% of Delivery Hero and expects the deal to increase non-GAAP EPS upon closing, with high-single-digit percentage accretion by the third year. The combined company would operate across 99 markets and generate $236 billion in pro forma gross bookings, though the transaction still requires regulatory approvals that could delay it or force concessions.
Costco Expands DoorDash and Uber Delivery as Membership Growth Slows
Costco Wholesale Corp. is widening its same-day delivery reach through DoorDash and Uber Eats as its membership growth slows. DoorDash is rolling out same-day delivery from Costco warehouses nationwide, just a day after Uber Eats expanded its own Costco service to 48 states. Costco had 82.9 million members as of June, yet membership growth was down 4% year-over-year, a concern because membership fees supply the company with high-margin recurring revenue and foster consumer loyalty. Costco's net sales for fiscal 2026 were $297.3 billion, up 10% from the prior year, but its stock is up only around 4% this year, compared with a gain of more than 10% for the S&P 500. The delivery partnerships could be especially crucial for younger consumers, a group Costco has struggled to attract and retain, and the next test is whether the expanded digital footprint can translate into faster membership growth.
Amazon Plans Project Mercury Same-Day Delivery Expansion to 1,000 Sites by 2031
Amazon is reportedly preparing a major expansion of its same-day delivery network, targeting more than 1,000 dedicated facilities by 2031, up from roughly 85 today. The initiative, known internally as Project Mercury, would place dedicated same-day facilities within a 10-mile straight-line radius of 80% of U.S. Prime subscribers by 2031, according to Business Insider, compared with many current same-day sites positioned roughly a 90-minute drive from customers. Amazon's three-year operating plan allocates $6.8 billion toward U.S. same-day capacity during 2026 and 2027, and internal analysis reportedly estimates Project Mercury could generate $7.1 billion in economic value over a decade and become cash-flow positive by 2030. An Amazon spokesperson said internal forecasts are preliminary, subject to significant revision, and should not be treated as finalized plans, while noting the company is focused on delivering faster for customers. The expansion could strengthen Amazon's speed advantage against Walmart, DoorDash and Instacart, but the biggest risk is overbuilding capacity before order density justifies the investment.
AMZN · Capital · Positive Amazon's three-year plan allocates $6.8B to U.S. same-day capacity, with Project Mercury projected to add $7.1B in economic value and turn cash-flow positive by 2030.
CART · Competition · Negative Amazon's faster same-day network could strengthen its speed advantage against Instacart (Maplebear).
DASH · Competition · Negative Amazon's same-day expansion could strengthen its speed advantage against DoorDash.
WMT · Competition · Negative Amazon's same-day expansion could strengthen its speed advantage against Walmart.
DoorDash, Instacart and Uber Eats Become Retail Delivery Backbone
DoorDash, Instacart and Uber Eats have grown from restaurant-focused apps into the fulfillment backbone for thousands of U.S. retailers, turning stores themselves into same-day shipping warehouses rather than building new distribution centers as Amazon did. DoorDash, which launched grocery and convenience in mid-2020 and added home improvement in 2024, now serves 44 of the top 100 U.S. retailers, while Instacart connects more than 2,200 retail banners representing almost 100,000 stores, a network reaching more than 98% of North American households. Uber recast grocery, alcohol, convenience and general merchandise as a single Grocery & Retail business, adding Home Depot for contractors and bringing almost 9,000 Dollar Tree stores onboard in an August 2025 partnership. The shift became durable in 2024, when DoorDash posted its first annual profit under generally accepted accounting principles, $123 million on $10.7 billion in revenue, and Instacart cleared $457 million in net income. Now the platforms are extracting more from the retailers that depend on them: DoorDash charges restaurants commissions of up to 30% of each order's subtotal on its Premier plan, and Uber Eats' blended cost commonly runs 25% to 35%, according to an analysis by direct-ordering vendor Zay-OS. A joint investigation by the Groundwork Collaborative, Consumer Reports and More Perfect Union found Instacart used pricing software called Eversight to run hidden randomized experiments that could add as much as 23% to the cost of an identical item ordered from the same store at the same moment, a practice Instacart said in a July 2026 post that a few retail partners had wound down. Meanwhile, New York City's Department of Consumer and Worker Protection set a delivery-worker minimum of $22.13 for the first pay period starting on or after April 1, 2026, after a 3.2% inflation adjustment, and plans to cover all delivery apps in early 2027.
DASH · Demand · Positive DoorDash now serves 44 of the top 100 U.S. retailers and posted its first GAAP annual profit of $123M on $10.7B revenue as retailers adopt its fulfillment network.
CART · Regulation · Negative Investigation found Instacart used Eversight pricing software for hidden randomized experiments adding up to 23% to item costs, drawing regulatory scrutiny.
UBER · Demand · Positive Uber Eats recast grocery, alcohol, convenience and general merchandise as a single Grocery & Retail business, adding Home Depot and nearly 9,000 Dollar Tree stores, expanding its retail delivery network.
DLTR · Demand · Positive Dollar Tree brought almost 9,000 stores onto Uber Eats in an August 2025 partnership, expanding its same-day delivery reach.
HD · Demand · Positive Home Depot was added to Uber's Grocery & Retail business for contractors, extending its delivery fulfillment.
Walmart Partners With Papa John's to Expand Restaurant Delivery
Walmart Inc. is expanding its restaurant-delivery business through a partnership with Papa John's that will let customers in select U.S. markets order pizzas, sides and desserts through Walmart's app and website. The service is expected to launch this fall before expanding to thousands of participating Papa John's locations nationwide, with customers able to order restaurant food separately or alongside Walmart groceries and household products, and Walmart's delivery network handling fulfillment. The move builds on Walmart's broader push into fast delivery: U.S. e-commerce sales rose 24% in its latest quarter, fast-delivery services for groceries and general merchandise grew 48%, and 30-minute-or-less delivery was available in 38 U.S. markets. The partnership could strengthen Walmart's position as a broader consumer-delivery platform, since roughly 80% of its e-commerce orders are already fulfilled from stores, and it expands Walmart's restaurant offering beyond earlier partnerships as an alternative to dedicated platforms such as DoorDash and Uber Eats. Still, the deal carries risk: restaurant delivery could add complexity and relatively low-margin volume, and Walmart's latest results showed U.S. comparable sales growth of only 2.6%, its weakest in more than six years, even as e-commerce grew 24%.
PZZA · Demand · Positive Papa John's pizzas, sides and desserts will be orderable through Walmart's app and website, expanding its customer reach.
WMT · Demand · Positive Walmart adds Papa John's restaurant ordering to its app, expanding its delivery offering and platform appeal.
DASH · Competition · Negative Walmart's expanded restaurant delivery via Papa John's positions it as an alternative to dedicated platforms like DoorDash.
UBER · Competition · Negative Walmart's restaurant-delivery push is framed as an alternative to dedicated platforms such as Uber Eats.
Serve Robotics Inc. is rolling out Beacon, a new standalone product designed to overcome a key obstacle to wider robotic delivery adoption by reducing the difficulty of integrating autonomous robots with restaurant systems. The company estimates that almost two-thirds of delivery orders in its operating areas cannot currently benefit from robotic last-mile delivery because of back-end integration barriers, and Beacon is designed to address this through its own cellular connectivity, requiring only a consistent power source at the restaurant and no dependence on restaurant internet or an existing point-of-sale system. The strategy fits Serve Robotics' broader effort to reduce dependence on major delivery platforms, with management investing in direct merchant relationships while maintaining partnerships with delivery marketplaces; DoorDash deliveries grew 50% in the first quarter of 2026 and another 50% between June and July. Shares of Serve Robotics have fallen 63.3% over the past year compared with the industry's decline of 19.1%, and the stock trades at a forward 12-month price-to-sales multiple of 22.38 versus the industry average of 11.91. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for SERV's 2026 loss per share implies a year-over-year deterioration of 66.3%, with loss per share estimates for 2026 unchanged in the past 30 days, and the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Robotics & Physical AI › Autonomous Trucking & Delivery ▲Technology
SERV · Technology · Positive Serve Robotics rolls out Beacon, a new standalone product removing restaurant back-end integration barriers to robotic delivery adoption
DASH · Demand · Positive DoorDash deliveries grew 50% in Q1 2026 and another 50% between June and July, cited as Serve Robotics' platform partnership volume
Serve Robotics Cuts 2026 Revenue Guidance to $9-$10 Million as Uber Deliveries Weaken
Serve Robotics lowered its 2026 revenue guidance to $9-$10 million from $26 million, after removing the substantial second-half increase in Uber delivery volumes assumed in its earlier outlook. The company attributed the second-quarter Uber delivery-volume decline largely to changes in the operating model and integration between the two companies. Total revenues rose more than 400% year over year to $3.2 million in the second quarter, with DoorDash deliveries growing nearly 50% sequentially, advertising accounting for nearly half of robotic food-delivery revenues, and recurring revenues making up more than half of the quarterly total. Hospital robotics added seven multiyear contract extensions and two new hospital contracts year to date, while the Beacon device, additional marketplace partnerships and autonomy improvements aim to lift utilization across its 2,000-robot fleet. Serve Robotics has not quantified whether alternative channels can replace the lost Uber volume, and its shares have fallen 46% over the past year.
Skims and DoorDash Launch On-Demand Delivery Partnership
Skims and DoorDash have announced a partnership that brings on-demand delivery from all Skims retail stores across the U.S., with customers able to shop more than 23,000 Skims styles and receive deliveries in under an hour. DoorDash is Skims' first on-demand delivery partner, and Skims is the first brand on the platform to offer a range spanning intimates, everyday apparel, and outerwear. The partnership expands Skims' retail strategy beyond its website and stores, while adding a well-known apparel brand to DoorDash's non-restaurant assortment. Skims, founded by Kim Kardashian and Jens Grede in 2019, has scaled into an omnichannel apparel business and is expected to go public in the future, though no timeline has been confirmed. Last month, Skims entered India, a move expected to provide a major boost to the brand.
Walmart Expands Food Delivery with Dunkin Partnership
Walmart is expanding into restaurant food delivery through a new partnership with Inspire Brands, starting with Dunkin. The rollout begins at about 150 Dunkin locations inside Walmart stores, with plans to extend to most of Dunkin's roughly 10,000 U.S. restaurants. Customers will be able to combine restaurant food and drinks with Walmart purchases in a single delivery, leveraging Walmart's existing delivery network and store presence. This move intensifies competition with DoorDash and Uber Eats, and Walmart stores also host some McDonald's locations, potentially adding another restaurant category. For investors, the initiative offers another use of Walmart's delivery infrastructure, though the near-term earnings impact remains uncertain.
Circana and DoorDash Partner to Validate Incremental Sales
Circana and DoorDash have announced a partnership to provide independent, third-party validation of DoorDash's advertising measurement, now available to select advertisers for Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands. The collaboration aims to give consumer packaged goods brands a trusted view of the true incremental impact of their DoorDash ads. New findings show that among buyers of measured brands, 76% purchased in store only, 13% on DoorDash only, and 10% through both channels, with 56% of DoorDash buyers purchasing exclusively on the platform. Early results from a major beverage company showed $0.59 in incremental sales per household through DoorDash, three times the Circana Beverage Benchmark. The partnership addresses the need for standardized measurement across retail media networks, as highlighted by Circana's Lindsay Pullins and DoorDash's Katie Daleo.
DASH · Demand · Positive Partnership with Circana provides third-party validation of ad effectiveness, likely boosting advertiser confidence and demand for DoorDash's ad products.
Circana · Demand · Positive Partnership expands Circana's measurement services to DoorDash's retail media network, increasing demand for its analytics offerings.
Owner Raises $240M Led by Goldman Sachs at $2.3B Valuation
Owner, an AI-native platform for local businesses, announced a $240 million Series D funding round led by Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, pushing its valuation to $2.3 billion. The company has surpassed $100 million in annual recurring revenue, up from $1 million in 2020, with existing investors Meritech, Redpoint, Headline, and Benchmark's Jack Altman also participating. Owner's platform acts as an 'AI CMO and CTO' for restaurants, automating website management, online ordering, marketing, and customer support, and claims its websites convert 146% more visitors into customers compared to independent restaurant sites. The company faces competition from Toast, DoorDash, and Square, but its bet is that none of them owns the intelligence layer that decides what to build and how to convert visitors. The global AI agents market is projected to reach $52.62 billion by 2030, and Owner is one of the first vertical AI agent platforms to clear $100 million in ARR by selling directly to small businesses. Risks include a pending lawsuit from Popmenu over its Website Grader tool and the challenge of scaling to 15 different verticals.
Carter's Raises Dividend and Partners with DoorDash
Carter's, Inc. declared a quarterly dividend of US$0.25 per share, payable on September 25, 2026, to shareholders of record as of September 1, 2026, and became DoorDash's largest kids' apparel assortment for rapid back-to-school delivery. The company also reported earnings that exceeded expectations and raised its outlook, citing marketing and productivity improvements and strength in its baby segment. The new dividend and DoorDash partnership are seen as modest supports to brand reach and confidence, but the core investment narrative still hinges on the baby franchise's resilience against weaker birth trends and rising tariffs. Carter's projects $3.1 billion revenue and $134.4 million earnings by 2029, implying a fair value of $42.67 per share, a 24% upside to its current price. The most optimistic analysts see revenue near $3.2 billion and earnings near $127.8 million, highlighting divergent views on the company's future.
Kohl's Expands DoorDash Delivery and Martha Stewart Line
Kohl's announced several developments in August 2026, including expanding Martha Stewart kitchen electrics from Amazon into Kohl's stores and Kohls.com, launching a DoorDash partnership for rapid delivery from more than 1,100 locations, and declaring a regular quarterly dividend of US$0.125 per share payable on September 23, 2026. These moves aim to refresh the merchandise mix and widen distribution ahead of the upcoming second quarter earnings release. The DoorDash partnership ties Kohl's more directly into rapid delivery for apparel and home goods, potentially affecting digital conversion and customer reach metrics. Kohl's narrative projects $15.5 billion revenue and $202.0 million earnings by 2029, assuming fairly flat yearly revenue growth and a $70.0 million earnings decrease from $272.0 million today. Some analysts are more cautious, assuming revenue drifts to about US$14.8 billion and earnings to roughly US$204 million.
Meta Platforms could debut its new consumer AI agent, internally called Hatch, as soon as late August or early September, according to The Information. Unlike a conventional chatbot, Hatch is designed to communicate with outside services such as DoorDash, Etsy, Reddit, Yelp, and Microsoft Outlook, letting users ask the agent to perform tasks across the web. Meta has also discussed a tiered subscription scheme, with a premium package potentially costing as much as $199.99 per month, though no final pricing has been released. The company is separately eyeing October for a new AI model internally called Watermelon, signaling a faster push from AI research to consumer products.
Serve Robotics reported a wider second-quarter loss and cut its full-year revenue outlook, sending shares down 17.8% since the Aug. 6 earnings release. Loss per share widened to 80 cents from 36 cents a year earlier, while revenue jumped 404.4% to $3.24 million, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 15.9% on earnings and 8.5% on revenue. The company lowered 2026 revenue guidance to $9 million to $10 million from $26 million previously, citing weaker delivery volumes and an uncertain Uber partnership that it does not expect to renew after early 2027 unless the operating model improves. Serve Robotics also posted a gross loss of about $8.8 million and non-GAAP operating expenses of about $40.4 million in the quarter, while its forward 12-month price-to-sales ratio stands at 13.31, a premium to industry peers. Zacks maintains a Hold rating on the stock, noting that software and recurring revenues are expanding and DoorDash deliveries grew nearly 50% sequentially, but near-term challenges from lower volumes and widening losses limit upside.
Retail drone delivery shifts from pilots to hybrid fulfilment
Drone delivery is moving from pilot projects toward a credible role in retail fulfilment, with Amazon planning to expand Prime Air to nearly 500 US cities and towns by the end of 2026 and Walmart having completed more than one million drone deliveries. Walmart is working with Wing on a network of more than 270 locations planned for 2027, while DoorDash received FAA Part 135 air-carrier certification in July and launched DoorDash Air, and Uber has agreed to introduce Zipline drone delivery through Uber Eats with a target of one million drone deliveries a day by the end of 2029. The future is likely a hybrid model in which drones handle small, lightweight, time-sensitive purchases in selected suburban and metropolitan areas, while vans and couriers continue to serve larger or consolidated orders. Regulation remains a key gateway, with the FAA proposing a Beyond Visual Line of Sight framework in 2025 and the UK Civil Aviation Authority aiming to enable routine BVLOS operations through 2027, but cost competitiveness will depend heavily on utilisation, delivery density, and increasing autonomy.
Airbound raises $37M to build truck-competitive delivery drones
Indian drone startup Airbound has raised $37 million in a Series A round led by Greenoaks with participation from DoorDash, Lachy Groom, Lightspeed, and Humba Ventures. The funding comes less than a year after an $8.65 million seed round, bringing total raised to nearly $50 million. Airbound is developing vertical-flight drones designed to weigh less than their cargo, with a current model weighing about 3.3 pounds and carrying 2.2 pounds, and a next version expected to weigh 6.6 pounds and carry up to 11 pounds. The company has completed more than 13,000 autonomous flights in Bengaluru and Guntur, including over 1,000 flights transporting diagnostic samples for Narayana Health. Airbound has signed an agreement with the Andhra Pradesh government to build a three-city drone delivery network targeting 10,000 flights per day for retail, e-commerce, and healthcare, though the startup remains broadly pre-revenue and faces regulatory hurdles around beyond visual line of sight approvals.
Gig economy stocks reported mixed second-quarter earnings, with revenues in line with analyst consensus but next-quarter guidance 11.2% below expectations. Lyft posted revenues of $1.84 billion, up 16.1% year over year and beating estimates by 1.9%, while DoorDash delivered the biggest beat with revenues of $4.45 billion, up 35.6% year over year. Fiverr was the weakest, with revenues down 10% year over year to $97.78 million and full-year EBITDA guidance missing significantly. Upwork's revenues fell 1.7% year over year to $191.7 million, and Uber's revenues rose 12.2% year over year to $14.19 billion, in line with expectations. On average, gig economy stocks are down 6% since their latest earnings reports.
Amazon, Uber, DoorDash, and Walmart are making major new commitments to drone delivery, signaling a shift from experiment to scale. Amazon said Wednesday its Prime Air service will expand to nearly 500 U.S. cities and towns by the end of 2026, a sixfold increase from its current footprint, with new markets including Chicago, Atlanta, Cleveland, and Syracuse, N.Y. DoorDash recently launched DoorDash Air after receiving FAA certification to operate its own commercial drone service, while Uber announced a strategic partnership with Zipline that aims for 1 million drone deliveries per day by the end of 2029. Walmart told Fortune it is approaching 2 million drone deliveries and plans to build more than 270 drone delivery locations in 2027 with Wing, Alphabet's drone company, reaching more than 40 million Americans.
Amazon to Expand Drone Delivery to Nearly 500 Cities and Towns
Amazon announced a major expansion of its Prime Air drone delivery service, with plans to reach customers in nearly 500 cities and towns by the end of 2026. The service, which offers delivery in as little as 30 minutes, will launch in metro areas including Chicago, Atlanta, Cleveland, Syracuse, New York, and Boise, Idaho. Amazon currently operates in 11 metro areas such as Phoenix, Detroit, Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio, and has already delivered hundreds of thousands of packages by drone this year. The expansion comes as competitors like Walmart, DoorDash, and Uber also push into aerial delivery, despite regulatory hurdles and concerns over noise and safety.