Instacart was all about grocery delivery, here’s how it’s different now

When Fidji Simo took over as CEO of Instacart in 2021, the grocery delivery startup’s growth was cratering as its pandemic boom ebbed. The board of directors asked her to find new ways for the company to earn money.

Simo, a former executive at Meta with experience in advertising, played to her strengths. She aggressively expanded Instacart’s advertising business, begun in 2019, which allows food brands to pay for better placement in the company’s app. Brands had questioned whether the ads were helping, so Simo commissioned studies demonstrating their efficacy, two people familiar with the company said.