Delivery Hero launches agentic AI assistant for local shops and restaurants with roll-out due across platform
Delivery Hero, a German multinational online food ordering and food delivery company, has unveiled its new agentic AI assistant pitched at neighbourhood shops and restaurants to seamlessly accelerate their business.
“Small business owners have a lot to juggle and our new AI assistant helps them grow faster without adding to their workload,” says Johannes Bruder, Chief Product Officer at Delivery Hero. “What makes it different is that it doesn't just advise. It acts on behalf of business owners, the moment they approve, right inside a messaging app they already use. It’s an exciting part of our agentic AI strategy that we now roll-out across our global platform as we build the app that customers reach for every day.”
Shop and restaurant owners interact with the assistant through chats on WhatsApp. They can use text, voice notes and images to ask the assistant for help directly, or, if the owner allows, it can also make suggestions independently. If the owner approves a recommendation, the assistant can directly implement the changes.
"Running a small restaurant means doing everything yourself, and there's never enough time. Having this AI tool is like having an expert on my team who spots things I'd miss - a dish that isn't selling, a good moment to run a promotion, a review I should reply to,” says Othman, owner of Bahraini Kabab in Dubai. “I like how the assistant makes suggestions, but I can always decide and approve before anything changes, so I stay in control. It's helped me bring in more orders without adding to my workload."
The AI assistant currently supports over 40,000 restaurants across Delivery Hero’s global brands and markets, an early slice of the approximately 1.5 million partners on the company’s platform. The roll-out is set to continue over the coming months.
2026 RTIH Innovation Awards
AI 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.
