Uber and Zipline announced a drone-delivery partnership on 17 August 2026. Initial deliveries for Uber Eats were planned later that year; a million deliveries daily by the end of 2029 remained a target.
Investment accompanies the agreement
Uber declined to disclose the investment's financial terms to Reuters.
Starting with existing markets
Zipline identified Dallas and Houston among the first markets, followed by locations where it adds service. Its announcement is available at https://www.zipline.com/newsroom/zipline-will-make-1-million-deliveries-per-day-through-new-uber-partnership.
The delivery equipment
The company's maintained fact sheet describes Platform 2 lowering a delivery component on a tether while the aircraft hovers above. It distinguishes loading equipment from charging infrastructure: https://www.zipline.com/about/zipline-fact-sheet. Businesses place prepared orders in loading boxes; the aircraft can subsequently collect them asynchronously. Platform 1 is described separately as a long-range system using parachutes rather than tethered lowering. This describes its existing systems, not a separately specified Uber aircraft.
For home delivery, Zipline's fact sheet lists front yards, back yards and public parks among possible destinations.
Earlier groundwork in Dallas
On 30 July 2024, the Federal Aviation Administration announced authorizations allowing Zipline and Wing to operate in shared Dallas-area airspace. Operators could exchange planned routes and data through unmanned-aircraft traffic-management services.
For those authorized operations, the agency specified flights below 400 feet and separation from crewed aircraft.
- A separate Dallas–Fort Worth environmental review received a decision on 23 December 2025.
- The reviewed project placed charging or loading docks at commercial locations, including shopping centres, laboratories and warehouses.
- Its proposed site and flight limits were planning parameters, not a record of completed deliveries.
The proposal contemplated operations throughout the week, including holidays, with most flights during daytime rather than overnight.
Media inquiries
Zipline: media@zipline.com. Press information: https://www.zipline.com/about.