While Uber Technologies (UBER) finds itself in a heated battle against rivals like Alphabet’s (GOOG) Waymo, Lyft (LYFT) and Tesla (TSLA) to dominate the robotaxi space, it can’t be forgotten that its food delivery business remains a crucial part of its overall profits.
While Uber Eats brought in about half the revenue of its mobility business in 2024 — $6.9 billion for the latter compared to $3.8 billion for the former — it’s still a significant revenue driver for the company.
And now Uber is looking to bolster its service by announcing on Thursday that it has made its first investment in drone delivery through a strategic partnership with Flytrex, Inc.
The company said that its drone delivery business will begin testing in U.S. pilot markets by the end of the year.
Uber noted that its investment in Flytrex is part of its aim “to build the world’s most flexible, multimodal delivery network—expanding beyond cars, bikes, and couriers to sidewalk robots and now autonomous aerial delivery.”
Flytrex is one of only four drone delivery providers that’s been authorized by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations.
Uber said that its drone delivery service through Flytrex will allow “consumers to receive orders in minutes while reducing congestion and emissions.”
The company notes that Flytrex has completed over 200,000 deliveries across the U.S. to date and operates with FAA-certified safety standards.
“Autonomous technology is transforming mobility and delivery faster than ever before,” Sarfraz Maredia, president of Autonomous Mobility and Delivery at Uber, said in a statement. “With Flytrex, we’re entering the next chapter—bringing the speed and sustainability of drone delivery to the Uber Eats platform, at scale, for the first time.”
Uber’s stock gained nearly 2% on news of the Flytrex investment. It has surged 57% for the year.
Investor Bill Ackman recently pointed to Uber Eats as being “often overlooked by investors” despite the fact that delivery “comprises nearly 50% of Uber's total bookings value and is a major source of earnings growth.”
Ackman revealed in February that his Pershing Square fund had purchased 30.3 million UBER shares in Q1, calling it “one of the best managed and highest quality businesses in the world.”
Noam Bardin, Executive Chairman of Flytrex, said in a statement that autonomous vehicles are “redefining logistics on the ground and in the air” - and that partnering with Uber allows the two companies to combine their expertise.
“Together, we’re building the infrastructure for a future where autonomous systems seamlessly move goods through our communities, making faster, safer, and more sustainable delivery the new standard,” Bardin said.
Uber reported last month that its Q2 revenue for Uber Eats was $4.1 billion, up 25% year-over-year (YoY). Its gross bookings for delivery was $21.7 billion, up 20% YoY.
Financial terms of Uber’s investment in Flytrex were not disclosed.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are markedmarked