Some significant moves took place in the grocery space, with Amazon and Instacart announcing changes to their platform. Instacart launches 30-minute grocery delivery in 15 major cities. Amazon will shut down Prime Now and move it to the main app. 

Instacart launches 30-minute grocery delivery

Instacart’s new Priority Delivery service will deliver goods in select areas within 30 minutes, according to the brand.

Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, San Diego, San Francisco, and Seattle will be among the 15 cities where the speedy delivery service will be available.

Instacart’s delivery service is currently available in 85 percent of US households, with orders above $35 receiving free delivery. Priority Delivery pricing has yet to be announced.

Amazon Shutting Down Prime Now App

In related news, Uber and Amazon’s Prime Now were previously competitors with Instacart. Still, the latter was shut down last week.

Amazon said on Friday that its standalone Prime Now app will be discontinued. However, its “ultrafast” delivery option will be integrated into its main app.

The reasons for the decision was shared via a blog post by the VP of grocery, Stephenie Landry:

“Prime Now has become a customer favorite, attracting millions of Prime members around the world with ultrafast delivery of everyday essentials, gifts, toys, high quality groceries, and more from Amazon and local store… to make this experience even more seamless for customers, we are moving the experience from a separate Prime Now app onto the Amazon app and website so customers can shop all Amazon has to offer from one convenient location.”