DoorDash Introduces an AI Powered Shopping Assistant That Lets Customers Order Food and Everyday Items

Ordering food via a delivery app previously meant flicking through pages of categories, comparing menus before selecting the foods you want and adding them to the cart. It was an ok process, but it was a slow, tedious task when you didn't even know what you want.

Now, DoorDash hopes to make ordering much more conversational.

The delivery service has rolled out a new AI powered chatbot which will allow users to locate the foods they want through a natural language request or a photo. Customers no longer have to scroll through endless categories, instead they can just input what they want to eat or show the bot a picture of something that they like and it will pull up a relevant restaurant and items you may like.

This function is one that can be observed throughout the tech world as AI continues to evolve at such a rapid pace, replacing keyword search interfaces and bringing forth more conversational options as a result of users preferring to voice commands rather than type short questions into a search engine and navigate through endless pages of options.

Customers can now phrase their orders like, 'I'd like to order a spicy chicken dinner for two for under $30,' or they can submit a photograph of a particular dish and have the bot match up a recipe from an eatery near them. This process aims to save people both time and hassle when it comes to placing an order.

This is a vital feature for DoorDash and in turn any company operating in the competitive delivery service sphere because customer experience can greatly influence the amount that customers return and also order from the delivery service. By streamlining finding and choosing a dish DoorDash hopes that consumers can be more satisfied and will order from the platform more often.

Traditional searching methods can sometimes favor larger, well-established brands because they tend to pop up more often, and have higher visibility. With the use of conversational searching assistant there's more possibility for less well-known brands to gain some recognition based on the customer's demands.

This function also goes above and beyond the normal delivery service due to its use of photo input because image recognition technology has greatly developed to the point where it can successfully identify the food item, ingredients or food categories being pictured to make for more straightforward searches for the consumer who doesn't know what the item is actually called.

There will be some initial kinks, such as reliability, accuracy and overall intelligence of the recommendations, but hopefully it will be ironed out and customers can see that an AI ordering service can be incredibly convenient.

Despite the potential kinks, it's clear that AI is continuing to advance, and the way we interact with technology will evolve rapidly over time. Traditional tasks such as scrolling through endless menus and selecting dishes will be quickly replaced by the simpler act of requesting the foods that we want by using ordinary speech and bringing the delivery service one step closer to becoming a personal assistant for us.