Uber Eats’ Robot delivery underlines paradigm shift in Japan: GlobalData

29% of consumers spend highly on food delivery 

Uber Eats’ recent launch of its robot delivery service in Japan underlines the paradigm shift happening in the country’s food delivery space, GlobalData said.

GlobalData added that the use of delivery robots is an extension of the growing inclination towards food delivery amongst consumers.

Neralla Rama Ravi Teja, Consumer Analyst at GlobalData said that 29% of consumers describe their spending on food delivery as very high or quite high. Amongst consumers aged 18–24 years, this percentage climbed to 58%

“Even though the initiative looks progressive on paper, the increasing role of technology in food delivery is likely to attract backlash from some corners,” Teja said

“The innovation is also likely to spur opposition from gig workers, who have already been struggling with the country’s declining real wages and inflation,” Teja added.

According to the Labor Ministry, Japan’s real wages dropped by 2.5% in 2023, registering the steepest decline since 2014.