Instacart (CART-Q), the grocery technology company, has purchased an order fulfillment platform firm to add to its stable of technology and increase market share in new global areas.

Instaleap offers ecommerce, fulfillment and delivery software that will augment what Instacart currently offers.

“Instaleap’s technology, with features such as marketplace integrations and order aggregation, is designed to address the core needs of international retailers and complements Instacart’s broader enterprise offerings,” an Instacart spokesperson told FoodNX via email.

“We see a significant opportunity to grow internationally through an enterprise-led strategy, helping retailers modernize their online and in-store experiences.”

The company will initially be run as a wholly-owned subsidiary, but “Instacart looks forward to serving Instaleap’s retail partners with its existing product line and, over time, Instacart expects to expand more of its enterprise technology offerings to Instaleap’s partners,” the spokesperson said. It wasn’t clear when or if the company will fully absorb the new firm.

Instacart looking to beef up own offerings

Instaleap serves almost 30 countries in Latin America, Europe and the Middle East and provides order management and logistics tools for retailers. Its customers include Walmart, 7-Eleven and French grocer and retail company Carrefour, and it has partnered with more than 80 chain retailers, according to its website.

“We’ve built our platform with a deep focus on the unique needs of grocery retailers across diverse international markets. Joining Instacart enables us to scale our impact with the support of a trusted partner that shares our commitment to retailer success,” Antonio dos Santos Nunes, chief executive and co-founder of Instaleap, said in a press release.

With this purchase, Instacart hopes to expand its “international footprint” and to “build momentum with leading grocery retailers across Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East,” according to the same release.

Co-founded by Waterloo university grad

Apoorva Mehta founded San Francisco-based Instacart in 2012 and soon thereafter met co-founders Max Mullen and Brandon Leonardo. He got the idea for the app after studying at the University of Waterloo (UWO) in Ontario. Mehta immigrated to Canada when he was 14.

Mehta worked at BlackBerry while studying at UWO, and he graduated in 2008. He then worked at Amazon before launching the app.

Instacart’s market value soared during the pandemic, as consumers were forced to remain home during lockdowns. It reached a pre-IPO value of a US$39 billion valuation in 2021, according to Forbes.

The company eventually went public in 2023, and today its market cap is more than US$10 billion, according to Globe and Mail.

Today, Instacart has more than 2,200 retail partners that represent nearly 100,000 stores. In 2025, more than 26 million customers used Instacart, with approximately 10 million customers placing at least one order in December, according to the company in its 2025 final results.

Its revenue for fiscal 2025 was US$3.7 billion, up 11 per cent year-over-year, the company said. Its GAAP net income was US$447 million, down two per cent from the previous year.

Late last year, the company reached a settlement with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over alleged illegal practices regarding delivery fees. It agreed to pay US$60 million in customer refunds to settle.