This may be an isolated case.
Or not.
Nowadays, most businesses, if not all, rely upon artificial intelligence, such as when responding to customers’ concerns. They do this through enabling AI agents. AI agents, usually in the form of chatbots, can respond to several inquiries at once, and among their benefits is automating responses so same questions from different customers are answered well.
Aside from that, AI agents also have the power the enhance productivity by automating repetitive tasks, tracking and evaluating data, and making informed decisions. Thus, they can reduce operational costs, minimize human errors, and provide round-the-clock assistance.
Businesses that utilize AI agents benefit from quicker workflows, personalized customer experiences, and improved efficiency. Furthermore, AI agents likewise help employees focus on creative, strategic, and higher-value responsibilities at work.
Interestingly enough, DoorDash is not a fan of these AI agents, or, simply put, it’s not a fan of AI.
In its third-quarter earnings call, the world’s number one food delivery app revealed it has just seen “several hundred” orders processed and handled successfully by its AI agents. This, in comparison to the average three million deliveries it did daily last 2025.
DoorDash’s CEO Tony Xu is back to discuss what’s happening here: "I would say that this [using agents to order] is something that is still a very dynamic area. And my take on all things technology is you never want to fight gravity. But at the same time, you don’t want to be delusional. What I mean by that is if you look at where AI agents are today, we’re seeing maybe several hundred orders in total from some of these third-party agents.”
Right now, DoorDash is a heavy AI user, only that it does not see it working well.
Currently, it has its own technology agents, including a text-to-order agent it launched last September, a CLI agent introduced in July, and a chatbot known as Ask DoorDash launched in June, letting customers place orders through prompts and images. Ever heard of AI chatbots making the food ordering online for you? There you go.
Plus, the company also released an MCP to enable ordering from other chatbots for corporate ordering.
CLI agents are AI tools that use a terminal to inspect code, run commands, and test changes in a project before release. Meanwhile, MCPs or Model Context Protocols are open standards connecting AI applications with external tools, databases, and services. They enable secure data access, seamless integrations, automated workflows, and more capable AI agents.
Xu further stated that users are still preferring to place the orders by themselves through the app. However, he clarified that DoorDash is willing to learn more about agentic use cases, and develop a healthy relationship with providers. He added that, in the future, there could be an opportunity for it to advertise within these agents.
So, it’s not closing its doors. Tell RSF your thoughts! Create your account on Ridesharingforum.com to comment and discuss with people! ‘Til then, and Merry Christmas!