DoorDash Launches AI Chatbot for Food Orders

In its most recent AI push, DoorDash revealed earlier on Thursday that it is introducing a new AI chatbot that enables users to place food and grocery orders using text prompts and images.

DoorDash’s new AI chatbot can add ingredients to your cart from a recipe link or photo, while the Ask DoorDash assistant can also offer suggestions on where and what to eat next based on your current cravings, and the company plans to add a reservation-booking feature that lets you search for something like a “table for 2 downtown at 8PM” across all local restaurants.

Instead of needing to browse through eateries and shops to add items to their cart, the chatbot known as “Ask DoorDash” lets customers search the app for what they’re looking for in their own words. You can provide a recipe link to locate the items, explain the reservation you’re looking for, or let the chatbot know what you’re in the mood for.

DoorDash stated in the blog post that “traditional search works best when you know the exact restaurant or table you’re looking for.” “Ask DoorDash is made for the times when you don’t.”

As businesses compete to integrate AI assistants into daily life, food delivery services and internet behemoths are placing bets that AI may help make shopping more conversational and individualized. Uber Easts introduced an AI-powered “Cart Assistant” in February, and Instacart introduced an AI shopping assistant that supermarkets can provide to their patrons.

The DoorDash software can create your grocery cart using a recipe, a photograph of your shopping list, or a picture from a cookbook. After that, DoorDash will add every item to your cart along with the appropriate quantity. In order to prevent them from purchasing items they already own, it will ask customers to see whether they already have necessities like sugar and butter.

DoorDash says the chatbot can also reorder your last grocery cart or suggest new items using your previous order history.

When placing an order, you can specify to the chatbot that you would want a “filling dinner for a family of four.” Restaurants will then appear on the app along with a customized text that explains why they fit your search. With a query like “Show me kid-friendly vegetarian spots with mild options,” you may further refine the results.

You can ask DoorDash to create a basket with recommendations based on your budget, group size, dietary restrictions, or previous orders once you’ve chosen a location.

Users can ask the chatbot to locate a “table for two downtown for a date-night dinner around 8 PM” using Ask DoorDash for Reservations. Restaurants with availability will then be displayed by the app. Asking for something a little more personal will help you further refine the findings.

The chatbot is being released on iOS in a few areas for grocery shopping, restaurant searches, and DoorDash reservations. The company claims that in the upcoming weeks, it will reach more consumers nationwide.