Uber Technologies has agreed to acquire German company Delivery Hero for $14.8 billion in a deal that creates one of the world's biggest food-delivery groups.The voluntary takeover has an offer price of €41.50 ($47.50) and will give Uber's mobility and delivery platform 99 markets to serve, the companies said in a joint statement on Thursday.That puts it in the tier of industry bigwigs such as China's Meituan, the world's biggest food delivery platforms that serves about 770 million users, and DoorDash, which serves the US, Canada and Australia.Delivery Hero is the parent company of Talabat, which operates in the UAE and seven other Middle East countries. It also owns Saudi Arabia's HungerStation and Foodpanda, which primarily serves South-east Asian markets.It is unclear how the operations of Talabat and Careem – which folded Uber Eats into its portfolio after Careem was bought by Uber in 2020 – will evolve. They already face stiff competition from the likes of Deliveroo, Noon and Keeta, as well as other smaller players. Prosus, Delivery Hero's largest shareholder, sold a 4.5 per cent stake in the company to Uber in April, followed by a further 5 per cent stake to Aspex Management in May, according to statements on Prosus's newsroom. The sales are tied to conditions the European Commission attached to its approval of Prosus's 2025 acquisition of Just Eat Takeaway.com, which required Prosus to significantly cut its Delivery Hero shareholding.Delivery Hero is also mid-transition at the top: co-founder and chief executive Niklas Ostberg agreed with the supervisory board in May to step down by March 31, 2027, with a successor search under way, the company said in a statement on its website. The company faced EU antitrust action in June 2025, when the European Commission fined Delivery Hero and its subsidiary Glovo a combined €329 million for a cartel involving a no-poach agreement, exchange of sensitive data, and market allocation between 2018 and 2022, the Commission said in a press release.The National has reached out to Talabat and Uber for comment.Combined, Uber will be acquiring six delivery platforms spanning 50 markets and generating about $42 billion in gross bookings last year, the company said.Separately, Delivery Hero agreed to acquire units from New York-based investment firm SSW Partners in 14 markets, particularly where Uber Eats and Delivery Hero already overlap.Play01:06How 'proud' delivery riders help to keep the UAE movingUnder the deal worth about $1.6 billion, Uber will not acquire control of the businesses transferred to SSW, as the latter will search for partners to help position them for longer-term success, the statement said.Delivery Hero will acquire four businesses from SSW, which serves 14 markets and posted $11 billion in bookings in 2025, it said.Uber's move is aimed at widening access to “affordable and reliable” delivery services in population-dense markets, while creating more job opportunities, chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said.Together, we’ll nearly double the number of markets where we offer both mobility and delivery services, scaling a proven platform that we believe will create significant long-term value for our customers and shareholders,” he said.Food delivery platforms have evolved into all-in-one services – spanning food, groceries, rides, home and other services – as consumers increasingly rely on these companies for their convenience and ease of use, enabled by the latest technologies.Consolidation is becoming a key strategy as these companies seek to tap into increasing user bases and remain competitive.“The food delivery business is highly competitive and scale dependent … joining forces with a strong partner now is the right move for Delivery Hero to best secure its future competitiveness and ability to deliver value for all our stakeholders,” said Kristin Lund, chair of the Delivery Hero supervisory board.