Uber Technologies and drone-delivery specialist Zipline unveiled a strategic partnership on August 17 that will bring autonomous aerial deliveries to Uber Eats customers in the United States, starting later this year in Dallas-Fort Worth. Uber is also making an undisclosed strategic investment in Zipline as part of the deal.
Dallas first, then dozens of cities
The launch market will be Dallas-Fort Worth, where Zipline already holds an FAA Finding of No Significant Impact for its Platform 2 aircraft. The service will then expand into dozens of U.S. cities as Zipline layers in additional airspace authorizations, hubs and merchant sites — expansion the companies said will be gradual rather than nationwide overnight.
Zipline's Platform 2 can carry up to 8 pounds, fly as far as 24 miles, and lower packages to customers on a tether while hovering above the delivery point, targeting roughly 10-minute deliveries within 10 miles. Uber said its dispatch system will choose among human couriers, sidewalk robots and drones depending on the order and customer location — a hybrid last-mile network rather than a full swap.
Ambitious scale, undisclosed economics
The headline target — one million drone deliveries a day by the end of 2029 — would translate to about 365 million deliveries per year, roughly 135x Zipline's cumulative 2.7 million to date. Neither company disclosed the size of Uber's investment, its equity stake, revenue splits, per-delivery costs, or the specific fleet and infrastructure buildout needed to hit that number.
Uber's second drone bet
The Zipline agreement follows Uber's September 2025 partnership with Israeli drone operator Flytrex, which also included an Uber investment. Together they give Uber a two-vendor drone strategy while keeping aircraft manufacturing and aviation operations outside Uber's own balance sheet. It also joins a widening portfolio of automation bets on the Uber platform, including recent robotaxi tie-ups with Pony.ai for 2,000+ robotaxis in Europe and expansions with Waymo across 18 California counties.
Regulation still shapes the ramp
Commercial drone delivery in the U.S. still hinges on the FAA's new Part 108 pathway, launched in phases from July 2026, plus operator-specific approvals under Part 135 and Section 44807 exemptions. Zipline holds Part 135 air-carrier authority and a signed Dallas-Fort Worth environmental decision, but every new city adds airspace, state and local requirements — the practical throttle on how quickly the Uber-Zipline network can reach that seven-figure daily number. Competitors including Alphabet's Wing with Walmart and Amazon Prime Air are racing along the same regulatory runway.
Reporting based on coverage from Uber, Zipline, MLQ.ai and Africa Business Insight.