iFood CEO says company built an internal AI system to help executives make decisions

By Brazil Stock Guide — iFood has developed an internal artificial intelligence system that allows executives to query the company’s own data and institutional knowledge when making decisions, CEO Diego Barreto said in an interview with Revista V. The system is built on a data infrastructure the Brazilian delivery company has been developing since 2019.

Barreto said iFood has reached what he described as an almost fully systematized data environment, where meetings are recorded and decisions, discussions and business dilemmas are incorporated into the company’s knowledge base. Executives can access that information through an interface similar to a chatbot, but powered by proprietary iFood data rather than public information.

The technology is increasingly being incorporated into day-to-day management. Barreto told Revista V that the system effectively allows the company to “talk” to executives when decisions need to be made, improving the speed and quality of internal analysis. iFood has also deployed proprietary machine-learning models in areas including logistics, customer acquisition and advertising.

The AI push comes as iFood expands beyond its traditional food-delivery business. Barreto described the company as a “convenience ecosystem,” with businesses outside food already accounting for 35% of operations. New areas include logistics, financial services, benefits, pet products, beverages, cosmetics and convenience retail.

iFood plans to invest R$24 billion through March 2027, a figure previously announced by the company, as it accelerates expansion across those businesses. Barreto said the combination of higher revenue and lower customer-acquisition costs generated by better use of data helps explain the company’s capacity to sustain that level of investment.

The strategy also gives iFood another potential advantage as competition in Brazil’s delivery market intensifies. Barreto argued that capital alone will not determine the winners, saying local consumer knowledge, proprietary technology and the ability to turn large amounts of operational data into better decisions will be central to maintaining the company’s position.