Instacart has added a new feature to make shopping easier for users. Before, the app allowed members to search for recipes and order the necessary ingredients from local stores for pickup or delivery. Now, the company is adding new AI technology to the mix with Ask Instacart.
In a recent announcement, Instacart said:
“Today, we’re starting to roll out Ask Instacart, a first-of-its-kind AI-powered search tool designed to assist with customers’ grocery shopping questions – saving them time, inspiring their routine, and helping them make food-related decisions by offering personalized recommendations throughout the shopping experience.”
Not only can users ask the app “What’s for dinner?” but can also customize answers by dietary and budgeting restrictions. Members can even inform Ask Instacart about their personal food or brand preferences and set a cooking skill level.
Ask Instacart can help people break out of their recipe ruts by suggesting new recipes that fit their flavor profiles.
How does it work? As described by Instacart:
“Ask Instacart leverages the language understanding capabilities of OpenAI’s ChatGPT and our own AI models to unique catalog data that spans more than a billion shoppable items across more than 80,000 retail partner locations.”
All the Ask Instacart features include:
- Better understand what ingredients or dishes pair well with others, like, “What kind of side dishes should I serve with lamb chops?”
- Discover alternative ingredients that can be swapped for one another, like, “What fish is similar to salmon?”
- Get more information on cooking techniques, like, “What are good sauces for grilling chicken?”
- Generate lists of ingredients if they have a meal in mind, like, “What can I use in a stir fry?”
- Learn more about item attributes so they can get personalized dietary inspiration, like, “What are dairy-free snacks for kids?”
- Discover broader, context-specific inspiration for more open-ended queries, like, “What are the best veggies to roast?”
Ask Instacart is already available to over half of Instacart members and will reach all U.S. customers within a few weeks. This is one of several waves of innovation expected to take place over the next several years. A full breakdown of their services and prices can be found here.