How small was AI-agent ordering on Uber?

During the week of Halloween, Uber handled around 320 million trips and orders, but only four rides and 500 Uber Eats orders were placed by an AI agent.

What did Uber's CEO say about AI agents?

Dara Khosrowshahi said it is 'very, very early and very limited traction that we are seeing so far,' adding, 'we hope that there will be more traction.'

Is Uber still optimistic about AI agents?

Yes. Khosrowshahi said Uber sees agents as 'another opportunity to reach our platform' and expects it to be 'a net positive in terms of demand on the ecosystem.'

Large Language ModelsAI Business & IndustryTechCrunch AI2d agoNov 5, 2026, 10:00 JST

Uber: just four rides booked via AI agent in busiest week

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3 Key Points

What happened
On Uber's third-quarter earnings call, CFO Balaji Krishnamurthy said the company handled around 320 million trips and orders during the week of Halloween, but only four rides and 500 Uber Eats orders came from AI agents.
Why it matters
That is a tiny share of the roughly 320 million trips and orders in that same week, underscoring that agent-based ordering remains very limited in practice.

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Context & Analysis

Uber's disclosure offers a concrete counterpoint to the enthusiasm around AI agents that can complete tasks on a user's behalf. The company's own numbers show that even as startups like Instinct reach a $10 billion valuation and Meta's Muse tops 10 million users, transactions actually initiated by agents remain a rounding error for a platform handling hundreds of millions of trips and orders a week.

The pattern is not unique to Uber. DoorDash said on its earnings call last week that it has only received a few hundred orders from AI agents so far, with most customers still ordering through its app. Together, the two data points suggest that consumer habit, not agent capability, may be the near-term constraint.

Uber's CEO nonetheless framed agents as an additional channel rather than a replacement, noting that every major AI system company is talking to Uber and that he expects the number of major AI assistants to grow beyond the current eight. Whether that translates into meaningful volume is, by his own account, still an open question.

FAQ

How small was AI-agent ordering on Uber?: During the week of Halloween, Uber handled around 320 million trips and orders, but only four rides and 500 Uber Eats orders were placed by an AI agent.
What did Uber's CEO say about AI agents?: Dara Khosrowshahi said it is 'very, very early and very limited traction that we are seeing so far,' adding, 'we hope that there will be more traction.'
Is Uber still optimistic about AI agents?: Yes. Khosrowshahi said Uber sees agents as 'another opportunity to reach our platform' and expects it to be 'a net positive in terms of demand on the ecosystem.'

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Also reported by The Verge AI, Top Companies AI

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