As of 9:45 AM IST, Tuesday 27 October 2026. Based on reporting by The Wall Street Journal (as summarised by Fox Business), Semafor and CNBC. Neither company had announced a deal at the time of writing, and all reports say the talks could still fail.
DoorDash is in advanced talks to buy grocery-delivery rival Instacart in a deal that could value it at roughly $17 billion, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday 26 October, citing people familiar with the discussions. An agreement could come as early as this week, the Journal said, but there is no guarantee the talks will produce a deal.
What has been reported
- The Wall Street Journal: advanced talks, a possible valuation of about $17 billion, and a deal possibly this week. The Journal put Instacart's value at about $13 billion before the report and DoorDash's market value at about $73 billion, according to Fox Business.
- Semafor: DoorDash is in exclusive talks, but "a deal is far from certain". Semafor could not determine the price under discussion. It estimated Instacart's value at about $12 billion, said a conservative premium would put a deal around $15 billion, and put DoorDash's market value at about $75 billion.
- Background: The Information first reported Instacart's sale process on Friday, including interest from Uber. Semafor said Bloomberg later reported that Uber's interest had cooled.
How the shares moved
Investors sent the two stocks in opposite directions on Monday. CNBC reported Instacart up 7% and DoorDash down 5%. Fox Business put the moves at about 8% and about 6% respectively. The figures likely reflect different times of day.
Why DoorDash wants Instacart
A combination would merge DoorDash's restaurant-focused platform with Instacart's grocery-store business, creating a home-delivery giant. Both companies face stiff competition from Amazon and Walmart, which have expanded their own grocery delivery.
It would also continue DoorDash's run of deals. It bought Finland's Wolt in an all-stock transaction in 2022 and completed its takeover of British delivery company Deliveroo in 2025, Fox Business noted.
Second time around
This is not the first attempt. DoorDash bid for Instacart in 2021 at a "significantly higher valuation", Semafor reported, and those talks collapsed over price and antitrust worries. Semafor said neither obstacle looks as serious now, given the Trump administration's light-touch approach to mergers. But dealmakers expect that window could shift if Democrats do well in next month's US midterm elections, as senior Democrats have said they would look into antitrust approvals.
What to watch
- Whether the companies confirm a deal this week, and its price and structure (cash, stock or both).
- The premium paid over Instacart's pre-report market value.
- Any antitrust signals from US regulators.
DoorDash and Instacart could not immediately be reached for comment by Fox Business. Instacart declined to comment to Semafor.
Related reading on HorizonDesk
- EQT's take-private offer for Qiagen
- Meta's Muse Spark open-weight model
- SpaceX Q3 earnings and the Tesla merger committees
Sources
- The Wall Street Journal: DoorDash Is in Advanced Talks to Acquire Delivery Rival Instacart (26 Oct 2026, subscription)
- Fox Business: DoorDash reportedly in advanced talks to acquire Instacart (26 Oct 2026)
- Semafor: DoorDash in exclusive talks to acquire Instacart (26 Oct 2026)
- CNBC: Stock market live updates, 26 Oct 2026
