PHILADELPHIA and SAN FRANCISCO—Gopuff, a virtual on-demand convenience store, has agreed to acquire rideOS, an enterprise start-up that builds proprietary technology for advanced routing, on-demand dispatch and fleet optimization for the fast-growing delivery and logistics industries.
As Gopuff launches in more complex and high-density cities, accelerates geographic expansion and enters into new verticals, rideOS’ proprietary technology and team of industry-leading experts will enable the company to innovate faster, power multi-modal deliveries, and continually reduce delivery times to continue to deliver a best-in-class customer experience, the company said.
rideOS was created in 2017 by two founding members of Uber’s Advanced Technology Division on mapping and self-driving vehicle technology, Justin Ho and Chris Blumenberg.
“rideOS is among the best mapping, dispatching and routing technology firms in the industry, and we are thrilled to have them lead innovation in key sectors for Gopuff. This investment will enable Gopuff to continually improve the customer experience in more complex geographies as we lead and define the Instant Needs category worldwide,” said Sharad Sundaresan, Gopuff’s senior vice president of product and growth.
Gopuff said acquiring rideOS, a company created and led by mapping and ride-hailing pioneers from Uber, Google, Apple and others, will afford Gopuff several strategic advantages, including:
- Provide Gopuff with a team of global experts dedicated to optimizing and innovating its logistics and operations technology
- Bring Gopuff immediate access to proprietary delivery, routing, and logistics technology and the ability to accelerate the rate of innovation in these sectors
- Position Gopuff to further improve its industry-leading delivery times and superior unit economics
- Quickly develop technology to power multimodal deliveries and other advancements, to excel in more complex, high-density cities
- Enable Gopuff to develop new tools for its field organization and delivery-partners that both improve their experience and enable greater efficiencies
“Gopuff’s mission and global ambition to be the world’s go-to solution for immediate everyday needs is a natural extension of the rideOS’ vision to build software that efficiently moves people and things throughout the world,” said Justin Ho, co-founder and CEO of rideOS.
“We see this as a unique opportunity to scale our culture, values, team, products and technology, with a company at the forefront of defining the ‘instant needs’ economy. Given Gopuff’s exponential growth, we expect to significantly increase our headcount by the end of this year, expanding our presence in Silicon Valley, Pittsburgh and Berlin,” Ho added.
In March, GoPuff announced it was raising $1.15 billion in new funding to accelerate strategic priorities, which include geographic expansion across the U.S. and internationally, introduce new product categories and investing in talent and new technologies to enhance the customer experience.