Uber says AI helpers booked just 4 rides last quarter

Uber says outside AI helpers arranged only four rides in the third quarter of 2026. Executives shared the number on an earnings call. Uber Eats did a bit better, with around 500 orders from AI agents during the week of Halloween.

What the numbers show

Uber handled a total of 320 million rides and Uber Eats deliveries. Against that, the agent share is tiny. This is the first time Uber has shared these counts.

An AI agent is a program that acts for you, such as booking a ride or ordering dinner from a typed request. Meta's Muse and OpenAI's Dots are examples. Some experts have warned that people could use agents instead of opening apps like Uber and DoorDash. That would cut the apps out of the customer relationship.

What Uber says about it

CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said Uber hopes for more traction. He said the company thinks its own app will be the most "delightful and easy" option, but it will work with outside AI firms. He called it "very, very early."

Uber is also building its own AI tools. Earlier this year it launched a Cart Assistant for Uber Eats. It builds a grocery list from a photo of a recipe or a text prompt.

The Verge notes that agents still have many friction points. It also says Uber and DoorDash have little reason to let agents replace their own customers. How fast agent orders will grow is not known yet.