DoorDash launches AI agent that takes food orders by text in Apple Messages
DoorDash's new AI agent lets U.S. customers order by text, suggest local restaurants and build group carts. It opens first through a waitlist.
By Eric Powlesland 2 min read
DoorDash has announced an AI agent that lets customers order food by sending a text in Apple Messages instead of opening the DoorDash app. As TechCrunch reported on Wednesday, the tool is starting out with a waitlist for users in the U.S.
The idea is that you type something casual and the agent works out what you mean. DoorDash's example is a customer texting "order my usual," which the agent understands as that person's regular Friday night order. Customers can also ask for a specific dish or for a local recommendation. The agent then searches nearby restaurants, puts together a suggested cart, and can text back photos of the food it recommends.
DoorDash says the agent can also handle group orders, including mixed dietary preferences and different quantities, all in one order. TechCrunch describes the launch as DoorDash's attempt to get ahead of rivals Uber Eats and Grubhub. It also fits a wider push toward personal AI agents that complete tasks so people don't have to click through apps and websites themselves. Separately, DoorDash said it will begin testing delivery drones with select restaurants in Northern California.
What it means for your business
For most small businesses, the immediate impact is small. This is a waitlist feature for consumers, and many details are not public yet. We don't know when it will be widely available, what it costs restaurants, if anything, or how the agent decides which local spots to recommend.
If you run a restaurant that sells through DoorDash, it is still worth paying attention. When a customer asks an agent for a recommendation, the agent effectively becomes the person choosing between you and the place down the street. A customer reading a text won't scroll a full list of options the way they might in an app. The agent will hand them a short suggestion instead. The source doesn't explain how those suggestions are made, but a few basics are sensible regardless:
- Keep your menu, dish names and descriptions accurate and clear, so software can match them to requests like a specific dish or a dietary need.
- Make sure your food photos are good. The agent can send photos of what it recommends, so your pictures may be the main thing a customer sees.
- Note your dietary options (vegetarian, gluten-free and so on) where the platform allows, since the agent is built to handle mixed group preferences.
For businesses outside food service, this is another sign of where customer behavior may be heading. More people may expect to get things done by sending a quick message rather than visiting a website or downloading an app. That doesn't mean you need to build an AI agent. But it is a reason to make sure the information about your products and services is clear and up to date wherever it lives online, because software may increasingly be the first thing to read it.
What to watch
- When the waitlist opens up to more U.S. users, and whether the feature expands beyond Apple Messages.
- Whether DoorDash explains how its agent picks restaurants, and whether restaurants can influence that.
- How Uber Eats and Grubhub respond.
- Results from DoorDash's drone tests with restaurants in Northern California.
