Uber Eats new AI assistant for grocery cart creation out now: Quicker and easier shopping

Uber Eats just rolled out its new AI feature called “Cart Assistant” in a bid to help customers with the grocery shopping experience.

Although in the form of a beta version, this innovative AI assistant is now available within the Uber Eats app.

How to use Uber Eats AI assistant

To use Uber Eats' Cart Assistant, users simply need to search for a grocery store in the Uber Eats app and tap the purple Cart Assistant icon on the store’s page to start shopping. To have the Cart Assistant automatically bring multiple required items, customers just need to enter a shopping list or upload an image of what they need.

This can include photos of handwritten lists or screenshots of recipes and their ingredients. Users also have the option to personalise their baskets by swapping out items for preferred brands or adding other products from the store.

The platform highlights that Cart Assistant uses buyers' previous shopping history to prioritise familiar items, such as your usual milk or favourite oatmeal, enhancing the personalisation of the shopping experience.

“Users have expressed a desire for a quicker shopping method, and we recognise the value of your time,” said Uber CTO Praveen Neppalli Naga in a statement. “Cart Assistant enables you to go from idea to checkout in seconds.”

This new feature makes Uber Eats a better competitor to rival other food delivery and grocery services that are integrating or developing AI chatbots.

For example, Instacart launched an AI search tool powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT in 2023, while DoorDash has been testing an AI chatbot called DashAI.

Nonetheless, Uber Eats is definitely striving in AI technology, including tools for merchants like AI-generated menu descriptions and enhanced food photography.