DoorDash is deepening its use of artificial intelligence with a new in-app chatbot designed to help customers order food and groceries more easily. The feature, called Ask DoorDash, is now available in select markets and uses photos and prompts to guide ordering. The company said it plans to expand the tool to support reservations and bring it to more U.S. cities in the coming weeks.

The launch reflects a broader push among delivery and gig economy companies to build AI into their products as consumer-facing agentic tools mature. DoorDash is competing with rivals such as Uber and Instacart, both of which have introduced AI-driven shopping assistants and merchant tools as the sector becomes a proving ground for new kinds of digital agents.

DoorDash has already been adding artificial intelligence across its platform in stages. In May, it introduced AI-powered tools for merchants, giving businesses new ways to manage their operations. The company is also investing in autonomous delivery technology, including delivery robots, as part of a wider effort to modernize its services.

The new chatbot arrives as DoorDash works through a major technology overhaul. The company is in the middle of building a unified tech platform to support its various brands after a series of large acquisitions. Those deals include the $1.2 billion purchase of restaurant reservation platform SevenRooms and the nearly $4 billion acquisition of Deliveroo.

Chief financial officer Ravi Inukonda said on the company’s most recent earnings call that DoorDash has made progress on the platform revamp and expects most of the spending tied to the project to happen this year. The investment push is central to DoorDash’s strategy, but it has also weighed on investor sentiment.

DoorDash shares have fallen 33% this year, while the Nasdaq has gained about 8% over the same period. The stock began sliding late last year after the company said it would spend several hundred million dollars in 2026 on new products and technology. That announcement triggered the stock’s worst single-day drop on record.

At the time, DoorDash defended the spending, saying the company could not grow into a larger business without making substantial investments. The message underscored the balancing act facing DoorDash as it tries to improve its technology while convincing Wall Street that the spending will pay off.

Ask DoorDash is the latest sign that the company sees AI as part of that future. By embedding a chatbot directly into the app, DoorDash is aiming to make it easier for customers to describe what they want and receive more tailored suggestions, while also broadening the ways users interact with the platform beyond traditional search and browsing.

The feature’s rollout also highlights how quickly AI tools are moving from back-end experiments to consumer products in the delivery industry. For DoorDash, the challenge will be showing that these upgrades can improve the customer experience and support growth at a time when the company is already under pressure to justify heavy investment in its technology stack.