Bengaluru: The story of online food delivery platforms is defined by two overriding consumer incentives: convenience and choice. At the back-end of this elementary demand-supply dynamic, there are technology stacks that help these platforms stay relevant in an evolving market.
With customisation at the core of the business, AI and ML applications are poised to change the way online platforms deliver food in India. They can refine the restaurant search by factoring in allergies and dietary restrictions; they can estimate delivery time better, by assessing variables like weather and traffic, and predict order volumes with greater efficiency.
This is also a feedback loop that throws up a pertinent question: despite these choices, are we not ordering the same things over and over? Some of the analysts have also played down the impact of these aggregators outside of the metros. But AI adoption is still seen as central to the future of the increasingly personalised market.
Ankur Bisen, Senior Partner and Head — Consumer, Food, and Retail at Technopak Advisors — looks at the prediction of demand as the big takeaway. With big data generated over about 15 years, the aggregators are in a position to tailor strategies for specific events or clusters. For instance, the nature and volume of demand for dishes during a particular festival.
Online food delivery platforms are built around Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) that enable multiple applications to communicate among themselves, helping restaurants and users navigate different stages of the order, from selection of food to checkout to delivery. APIs in these platforms involve various features that include integration of restaurant menus, display of restaurants close to the user, discounts and offers, payment gateways, real-time order tracking, and user ratings.
AI-ding diversification
Statista projects India’s online food delivery market to grow annually at 15.98% (CAGR 2024-2029) to touch a market volume of US$ 91.88 bn by 2029.
Greater adoption of AI applications is set to make customer engagement more seamless, while significantly upgrading after-sales systems and opening up multiple cross-selling possibilities. “The aggregators can look at data more innovatively and harness it for service expansion, which we are seeing now. Right now, there is a Swiggy-Zomato duopoly and they are expanding outside of food delivery. AI is going to crisscross the entire gamut of these services,” Bisen says.
Top players are working with generative AI across features, from putting together realistic food images and elaborate dish descriptions to providing assistance through chatbots. “Support in regional languages will be an important outcome. Voice orders will emerge but will still be a small part (of the transition),” Bisen says.
The aggregators are also wary of potential misuse.
On Monday, Zomato announced a ban on the use of AI-generated images in the menus promoted by its restaurant partners.
Analysts cite challenges in the form of data breaches. They also argue that for online food delivery to emerge as a truly inclusive market in India, innovation needs to be complemented with fair pricing models and better pay for the delivery riders.