Uber’s New Update Bumped Uber Eats Up The Priority List

Uber is quietly rolling out an update today where UberEats – Uber’s prepared food delivery service available in NYC, Los Angeles, Toronto, Austin, Chicago, and Barcelona – is getting a major makeover.

Changes

The update changes where UberEats is listed in the app. While previously bundled in with options like UberX and UberPOOL, Uber Eats is now a separate button at the top of the screen, completely independent of transportation.

Now when you open Uber’s app, you’ll be shown two options at the top that you can toggle back and forth between: a car-hailing option, which encompasses UberT, UberX, UberBLACK, UberPool, and, interestingly, UberRush, along with a food delivery option. (It’s important to note that Uber appears to still be rolling out this update, as some users are already seeing it while others aren’t.)

Does It Really Change Anything?

While the move doesn’t change any of the actual functionality of UberEats, it definitely shows that the company is getting serious about food delivery.

This move by Uber could be another attempt to get more users to try Eats, especially those who may not have previously noticed the feature.

Delivery Deal

Interestingly, the company is offering free delivery in NYC all month long (normally a $4 charge) which seems like it will help lure users to try the service.

A large part of Uber’s future success and valuation depends on its ability to turn its drivers into a delivery fleet. The first step is naturally expanding its own in-house delivery product, even if it is just to show retailers that it can achieve fast and reliable delivery at scale.

Uber Big

Uber’s emphasis on food delivery not only marks food delivery as Uber’s second major category, analysts at Cowen said in a note Monday, but it could also pose a huge challenge to food delivery stalwart GrubHub Seamless.

Uber is taking UberEATS seriously – it launched UberEATS in Los Angeles last year and has since expanded those services to New York City, Toronto, Austin, Chicago, and Barcelona. In each of its participating cities, Uber partners with a couple restaurants a day to offer meals to its customers, which the company delivers via courier within just a few minutes.