Amazon drops bombshell in grocery delivery wars as speedy service hits Brazil market

Amazon has launched its Amazon Now service in Brazil, promising to deliver essentials and groceries in 15 minutes.

This launched yesterday in Sao Paulo and will expand to seven other cities by 9th March. "Brazil has become a priority among the countries in which Amazon invests in the world. It is the highest investment priority today," said Country Head Juliana Sztrajtman.

In making this move, Amazon has dropped a bombshell in the grocery delivery wars, according to Brittain Ladd, a supply chain consultant and former Amazon executive.

In a LinkedIn post, he said: “This isn’t just another same-day push, it’s ultra-fast quick commerce hitting a high priority market, leveraging Amazon’s optimised micro-fulfillment hubs and logistics muscle to deliver perishables at speeds that redefine convenience. The move is already pressuring local players like iFood, Rappi, and even Mercado Libre (whose stock dipped on the news).”

He added: “The news reinforces how important micro-fulfillment centres (MFCs) have become to the grocery industry. But scaling true MFCs, especially in-store or hyper-local setups, remains slow.”

Partnerships like Walmart and Symbotic are stuck in prototype phases, with only potential for a couple of SymMicro installs in the next year. Walmart’s capex on automation is peaking now, but it’s more focused on larger DCs than the dense, proximity-based micro-hubs needed for sub-30-minute grocery speed.

The Kroger and Ocado Group partnership, meanwhile, has been a painful lesson in choosing the wrong strategy. The robotic “hive” model hasn’t delivered the economics or speed they hoped for in the US context, forcing a pivot toward third-party delivery and profitability tweaks while falling further behind on ultra-fast capabilities.

However, Ladd believes Ocado’s new strategy of installing small automated MFCs inside grocery stores, or opening standalone MFCs among a cluster of stores, may be a game changer. “Ocado has the best software, grocery picking robots, and platform. When combined with CFCs, no one has a better picking and delivery ecosystem than Ocado. No one,” he said.

Amazon’s acceleration highlights a clear divide: while Walmart and Kroger wrestle with retrofitting legacy networks with automation bets, it is deploying nimble, purpose-built micro-fulfillment infrastructure to own the “minutes” game globally (building on tests in the US, India, UAE, Mexico, etc.).

Ladd concluded: “In an era where agentic AI agents will optimise for speed and variety and cost, this kind of execution will widen the gap dramatically. This Brazil launch is a textbook example of Amazon turning speed into a moat. Walmart and Kroger aren’t standing still, but catching up on micro-fulfillment velocity will require rethinking timelines and partnerships fast.”

“Note to Walmart and Kroger: Ocado is your best option for closing the speed gap with Amazon. Kroger better figure out their strategy with Ocado and fast. AutoStore is your second option. Amazon is racing ahead. Soon, no one will be able to catch them.”

2026 RTIH Innovation Awards

On demand delivery will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards are now open for entries and celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Wednesday, 4th November.

Check out our 2025 winners here.

Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”

“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”

He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”

Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.