Episode 57: The Autonomous Future of Delivery with Harrison Shih of DoorDash Labs

Sergei Kirillov, chief commercial officer at Avride, joins the Food On Demand Podcast to discuss the rapid growth of autonomous delivery, lessons from large-scale deployments, 3PD partnerships and the practical challenges of robot delivery. 

Wade Allen, president of Win Brands, joins this episode of the Food On Demand Podcast to unpack how catering became a major growth engine for Costa Vida Fresh Mexican Grill, with same-store catering sales up roughly 18% year to date. He shares the playbook behind simplified catering menus, smart pricing, ingredient transparency and menu intelligence as sales drivers, and more.

Brittany Mercer, director of off-premise sales for Cowboy Chicken, joins this episode of the Food On Demand Podcast to share strategies for operators to drive off-prem growth, ranging from the intricacies of managing a virtual restaurant brand to the opportunities for implementing AI. 

Sri Divel, founder of The Culinary CMO, joins the podcast to share how brands are capitalizing on new technologies to overcome marketing hurdles and improve their digital presence. 

Kevin Bentley, head of technology for Jollibee Group North America, shares his take on the biggest topics in restaurant technology, everything from the potential to roll out voice AI drive-thru capabilities at Jollibee to the potential staff impacts of advancing technology in the foodservice space. 

Cassie Duval, director of catering at Mo'Bettahs, joins the podcast live from the exhibit floor of the 2026 Food On Demand in Dallas to share insight regarding the success of the catering program she oversees at Mo'Bettahs and common catering pitfalls for other brands. 

Harrison Shih, senior director at DoorDash Labs, breaks down the current state of autonomous delivery and the future it offers. Shih also shares insight into the design and vision behind Dot, DoorDash's autonomous delivery robot.

Alexis Parra, Chief Visionary Officer at Nékter Juice Bar, shares how tech is shaping growth for the fast-expanding juice and smoothie brand. She shares how digital channels drive the business, with the app generating about a third of orders and more than half of sales coming from third-party delivery. Parra also covers menu innovation and how travel and life experiences have helped shape her approach to building the brand.

Jeremy Cantarow, director of supply marketing at ezCater joins the podcast to discuss the changing consumer preferences for catering, stand-out approaches to catering menu innovation, the strategies behind ezCater's tech integrations and more. 

Stephen Klein, CEO and co-founder of Saivory, joins the podcast to discuss how restaurant operators use artificial intelligence to help decipher guest data, tailor the ordering process to consumers and overcome gaps in their tech stacks.