Are RMN Alliances Necessary to Topple the Titans?
Why the Instacart-Uber Ads Partnership May Be the First Domino in a Trend
Amid growing signs that retail media is reaching the Gartner Hype Cycle’s “trough of disillusionment,” the question arises over how much room there is for RMNs beyond Amazon and Walmart—which currently combine to own ~85% of the US market. Scale matters in retail media like it does in other digital advertising sectors, and RMNs that can’t offer enough scale to enough advertisers will see their revenues plateau. Many are already reaching that point.
The stakes get even higher as retailers report RMN revenues to Wall Street, putting themselves on the hook to maintain the aggressive growth outlook. Instacart and Uber—two of the most scaled RMNs—are among the handful accustomed to this scrutiny.
Perhaps that’s why these two companies recently announced an ad-selling partnership (my emphasis added).
SAN FRANCISCO (April 9, 2025) — Uber Advertising today announced it will leverage Instacart’s Carrot Ads solution in the US to help extend the reach of Uber Eats’ Sponsored Items formats to CPG advertisers of all sizes. The integration aims to provide a broader set of CPG advertisers with access to effective solutions that help them win the digital shelf.
This partnership was a major chess move under the direction of Kristi Argyilan, Uber’s new Global Head of Advertising, who most recently led Albertsons Media Collective. Did she see this deal as a quicker path to CPG ad budgets?
Despite the overall prowess of Uber Ads, heavy competition with Amazon, Walmart, Instacart, Kroger, Target, and makes winning CPG budgets an steep climb. Argyilan understands this dynamic all too well from her time at Albertsons, which despite being the second largest supermarket chain nationwide could sometimes find itself on the outside looking in.
Instacart and Uber is an unlikely partnership, and has several added layers of intrigue:
1. Scale – Both Instacart Ads and Uber Ads are $1 billion+ RMNs that are among the few to already establish themselves as viable standalone retail media networks.
2. Competition – The two RMNs compete head-to-head for CPG dollars as leading grocery delivery intermediaries—and are among the few RMNs where alcohol brands can advertise. They also have a common competitor in DoorDash, which similarly boasts a $1 billion ads business (and recently acquired Symbiosis to bolster its off-site ad offering).
3. Leadership – The announcement comes early in Argyilan’s tenure and amid a CEO transition at Instacart with Fidji Simo recently stepping down and Chief Business Officer Chris Rogers assuming the role.
Both companies are operating from a position of strength in retail media. Both are currently navigating key leadership transitions. These are not the conditions under which most companies embrace the risks of partnership. And yet they did exactly that.
What does their decision to partner indicate about the state of retail media and what comes next?