Governor Flags Off AIU’s 100th Annual Meet At D. Y. Patil Vidyapeeth Pune

Eternal Limited, the parent company of Zomato and Blinkit, reported strong Q4 FY26 results, with revenue surging 196% year-on-year to ₹17,292 crore and net profit rising to ₹174 crore. Amid this growth, founder Deepinder Goyal addressed concerns about AI-driven commerce disrupting the company’s core businesses. 

AI Threat To Food Delivery And Quick Commerce

Goyal compared current fears about AI assistants becoming the “front door for commerce” to past concerns when Google integrated flights, hotels, shopping, and restaurant ordering into its ecosystem. Despite Google’s scale, vertical apps like Booking.com, Expedia, and Amazon remained dominant. He argued that habitual, high-frequency transactions like ordering food or groceries are unlikely to shift to general-purpose AI chat windows. 

Consumer Behavior And Brand Recall

According to Goyal, food ordering involves complex decisions—browsing menus, comparing ratings, checking delivery times, and tracking orders—that cannot be simplified into a single conversational query. He emphasized that consumer behavior is the hardest thing to change, noting that “when someone is hungry, they think Zomato; when they need groceries quickly, they think Blinkit.” 

Eternal’s Strategy And Outlook

Eternal continues to operate separate apps for distinct use cases, reinforcing brand identity as a competitive moat. The company also highlighted its use of AI internally for demand prediction, route optimization, fraud detection, and customer experience, suggesting that AI will strengthen rather than weaken its business model. 

Key Highlights

•⁠  ⁠Eternal Q4 FY26 profit rose 71% YoY to ₹174 crore

•⁠  ⁠Revenue surged 196% YoY to ₹17,292 crore, driven by Blinkit growth

•⁠  ⁠Deepinder Goyal dismissed AI chat interfaces as a disruption threat

•⁠  ⁠Consumer habits and brand recall seen as strong defenses

•⁠  ⁠Eternal uses AI for logistics, demand prediction, and customer experience

Sources: Moneycontrol, YourStory, The Financial Express, Economic Times, Outlook Business