DoorDash unveiled its Ask DoorDash AI search tool earlier this month. Bloomberg/Getty Images Retailers and delivery services are adding AI tools to their apps and websites. One of the newest, Ask DoorDash, aims to make ordering groceries easier. I tried Ask DoorDash and found its recipe suggestions especially helpful as a home cook. "What's for dinner?" is a question AI can now answer. One of DoorDash's newest features lets users create an order using an AI chat. Customers generally describe what they want to eat or upload a photo of a shopping list or a recipe, and the feature, called "Ask DoorDash," compiles the ingredients in a shopping cart. DoorDash introduced the AI search option earlier this month. It also plans to add a search option for restaurant reservations to the bot. Most big retailers and delivery services have created AI shopping assistants, from Amazon's Alexa for Shopping to Walmart's Sparky. Many function similarly to search engines, but allow customers to ask questions about products, such as how much they cost and what reviews about them say, and get answers as if they were talking to someone in a shop. Ask DoorDash aims to provide a similar convenience, though perhaps for a quick weeknight meal or ingredients for a specific recipe when you don't have time to run to the store. Uber and Instacart have similar features. I tested out the feature, both for a specific recipe and for general meal inspiration. Ask DoorDash is not available everywhere in the US yet, but the app does let you change your delivery location. I found that Houston was one place where Ask DoorDash was already online, so I set that city as my location, though I live in Washington, DC. More ribs and cabbage than I needed My first test involved snapping a photo of a recipe so that Ask DoorDash could pull together a basket of ingredients. I picked a borsch recipe from a Ukrainian cookbook — both because it was something I wanted to make and because it called for some ingredients hard to find in the US, such as smoked dried pears. As advertised, I opened the DoorDash app, snapped a photo of the recipe from the book, and sent it in the chat. Ask DoorDash made substitutions based on what was available at nearby stores. Alex Bitter/BI Sure enough, Ask DoorDash compiled a basket of ingredients for the borsch from Randall's, an Albertsons-owned chain in Texas. Other grocers in the Houston area that work with DoorDash include Aldi, Kroger, and Target. The AI tool also asked me whether I already had some staples, such as butter and kosher salt, and substituted smoked paprika for the pears, per the recipe's suggestion. From there, I could've spent about $47 (plus fees and a tip) to get the 15 items delivered to the address I selected in Houston. There was more of each ingredient in my basket than the recipe called for — three pounds of pork ribs when the recipe called for one, for example, or a full head of cabbage when I needed a quarter of one. This is a common grocery problem: you have to buy the quantity the store will sell you. Still, it seemed like there was a missed opportunity for DoorDash. Perhaps Ask DoorDash could have asked me: "Would you like to add this barbecue rub to your cart? That would be a great way to use up the rest of those ribs tomorrow night." Ask DoorDash gave me a recipe idea I found Ask DoorDash's response to my second query more interesting. I had three pounds of shrimp in my fridge set aside for dinner, but no idea about how to make them. So I asked DoorDash for inspiration. Ask DoorDash recommended dishes based on what I had — and provided recipes. Alex Bitter/BI Up popped five ideas, from shrimp scampi to Cajun shrimp étouffée. When I asked for a recipe for the étouffée, DoorDash gave me one — and, of course, asked if I wanted to order the ingredients that I didn't have from Randall's. Ask DoorDash also gave me prompts in case I wanted a spicier recipe or wanted to make the same dish but with chicken. Anyone who cooks frequently has probably seen the mess of search results that come up when you're looking for a recipe online. It can be a hassle to find one that looks reputable — and doesn't involve scrolling through paragraphs of backstory about how the author's grandma perfected it. Yes, DoorDash is here to sell you groceries and deliver them. It's an area the company has been trying to grow since 2020. CEO Tony Xu said earlier this year that the service now offers more grocery options than Amazon. Providing inspiration about what to cook and serving up a recipe in a simple interface is a valuable service, though. Although I didn't order the other ingredients for shrimp étouffée, I did make a similar dish for dinner that night, loosely based on the DoorDash-recommended recipe. It was tasty. I could see myself using the app again for this purpose when it rolls out where I live — and when DoorDash could actually deliver groceries to me this way. Do you have a story to share about DoorDash? Contact this reporter at abitter@businessinsider.com or via encrypted messaging app Signal at 808-854-4501. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely. Read the original article on Business Insider
DoorDash unveiled its Ask DoorDash AI search tool earlier this month.Bloomberg/Getty Images Retailers and delivery services are adding AI tools to their apps and websites. One of the newest, Ask DoorDash, aims to make ordering groceries easier. I tried Ask DoorDash and found its recipe suggestions especially helpful as a home cook. "What's for dinner?" is a question AI can now answer. One of DoorDash's newest features lets users create an order using an AI chat. Customers generally describe what they want to eat or upload a photo of a shopping list or a recipe, and the feature, called "Ask DoorDash," compiles the ingredients in a shopping cart. DoorDash introduced the AI search option earlier this month. It also plans to add a search option for restaurant reservations to the bot. Most big retailers and delivery services have created AI shopping assistants, from Amazon's Alexa for Shopping to Walmart's Sparky. Many function similarly to search engines, but allow customers to ask questions about products, such as how much they cost and what reviews about them say, and get answers as if they were talking to someone in a shop. Ask DoorDash aims to provide a similar convenience, though perhaps for a quick weeknight meal or ingredients for a specific recipe when you don't have time to run to the store. Uber and Instacart have similar features. I tested out the feature, both for a specific recipe and for general meal inspiration. Ask DoorDash is not available everywhere in the US yet, but the app does let you change your delivery location. I found that Houston was one place where Ask DoorDash was already online, so I set that city as my location, though I live in Washington, DC. More ribs and cabbage than I needed My first test involved snapping a photo of a recipe so that Ask DoorDash could pull together a basket of ingredients. I picked a borsch recipe from a Ukrainian cookbook — both because it was something I wanted to make and because it called for some ingredients hard to find in the US, such as smoked dried pears. As advertised, I opened the DoorDash app, snapped a photo of the recipe from the book, and sent it in the chat. Ask DoorDash made substitutions based on what was available at nearby stores.Alex Bitter/BI Sure enough, Ask DoorDash compiled a basket of ingredients for the borsch from Randall's, an Albertsons-owned chain in Texas. Other grocers in the Houston area that work with DoorDash include Aldi, Kroger, and Target. The AI tool also asked me whether I already had some staples, such as butter and kosher salt, and substituted smoked paprika for the pears, per the recipe's suggestion. From there, I could've spent about $47 (plus fees and a tip) to get the 15 items delivered to the address I selected in Houston. There was more of each ingredient in my basket than the recipe called for — three pounds of pork ribs when the recipe called for one, for example, or a full head of cabbage when I needed a quarter of one. This is a common grocery problem: you have to buy the quantity the store will sell you. Still, it seemed like there was a missed opportunity for DoorDash. Perhaps Ask DoorDash could have asked me: "Would you like to add this barbecue rub to your cart? That would be a great way to use up the rest of those ribs tomorrow night." Ask DoorDash gave me a recipe idea I found Ask DoorDash's response to my second query more interesting. I had three pounds of shrimp in my fridge set aside for dinner, but no idea about how to make them. So I asked DoorDash for inspiration. Ask DoorDash recommended dishes based on what I had — and provided recipes.Alex Bitter/BI Up popped five ideas, from shrimp scampi to Cajun shrimp étouffée. When I asked for a recipe for the étouffée, DoorDash gave me one — and, of course, asked if I wanted to order the ingredients that I didn't have from Randall's. Ask DoorDash also gave me prompts in case I wanted a spicier recipe or wanted to make the same dish but with chicken. Anyone who cooks frequently has probably seen the mess of search results that come up when you're looking for a recipe online. It can be a hassle to find one that looks reputable — and doesn't involve scrolling through paragraphs of backstory about how the author's grandma perfected it. Yes, DoorDash is here to sell you groceries and deliver them. It's an area the company has been trying to grow since 2020. CEO Tony Xu said earlier this year that the service now offers more grocery options than Amazon. Providing inspiration about what to cook and serving up a recipe in a simple interface is a valuable service, though. Although I didn't order the other ingredients for shrimp étouffée, I did make a similar dish for dinner that night, loosely based on the DoorDash-recommended recipe. It was tasty. I could see myself using the app again for this purpose when it rolls out where I live — and when DoorDash could actually deliver groceries to me this way. Do you have a story to share about DoorDash? Contact this reporter at abitter@businessinsider.com or via encrypted messaging app Signal at 808-854-4501. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely. Read the original article on Business Insider
