Glovo's Spain rider-employment conversion was estimated to cost about €100M in 2025 EBITDA, and by March 11, 2026 Glovo announced 750 layoffs in Spain, with analysts saying restructuring costs may exceed that guidance, indicating ongoing margin pressure, not clear profitability.

Delivery Hero SE holds about 94% of Glovo as of July 2022, following a €2.3B deal. On July 16, 2026 Uber announced a $14.8B offer for Delivery Hero that would split Glovo, with Spain, Portugal, Poland, Romania and Moldova sold to SSW Partners for about €1.4B and the rest going to Uber.

Could AI replace Glovo's delivery riders?

Glovo's core dispatch engine already uses AI-based optimization (published in a July 2024 engineering paper), but physical last-mile courier delivery and its dense merchant network of over 150,000 partners as of May 2025 remain hard for AI to replace directly.

Who is Glovo's biggest competitor?

In Spain, Glovo leads food delivery with about 41% share versus Just Eat's 39% (2024 data), while Uber Eats is Glovo's largest global rival and is set to become a part-owner of Glovo's non-Iberian operations under the July 2026 Uber-Delivery Hero deal.

Will Glovo still exist as one company after 2027?

No single Glovo is expected to survive intact. Under the July 16, 2026 Uber-Delivery Hero deal, Glovo's Iberian core goes to SSW Partners for about €1.4B while roughly 17 other markets go to Uber, with closing expected H2 2027 pending regulatory approval.

Did Glovo have layoffs in 2026?

Yes. On March 11, 2026, Glovo announced an ERE cutting 750 jobs in Spain (about 15% of workforce), concentrated in engineering (~200), marketing (~150), and operations (~250), following a prior 250-job cut in January 2023.

E-commerce and marketplaces · subsidiary of Delivery Hero SE · Spain

Glovo

glovoapp.com ↗

Spanish food and grocery delivery marketplace, majority owned by Delivery Hero, now being split for sale.

Losing its protection

Assessed 22 July 2026 · Evidence as of 22 July 2026

The structural protection is eroding.

On the recordSince 22 July 2026 · Checkable from H2 2027 · Every call on the record Checkpoint: Regulatory approval of the Uber-Delivery Hero deal, which splits Glovo between Uber and SSW Partners

The call

Glovo runs a large, real marketplace, but it is contractually scheduled to be cut in two and handed to different owners by late 2027.

Glovo is an app that connects restaurants, delivery riders, and hungry customers in Spain, Kenya, and other countries. It has built real strength in its home markets (leading position in Spanish food delivery), but the company's ownership is being split apart: Uber is buying most of Glovo, while a separate investment firm is buying the Spain and Portugal piece. This messy breakup, combined with new rules forcing Glovo to treat riders as employees instead of contractors (which costs millions more), makes the business financially stressed even though the underlying market position is solid. What could change everything: whether regulators in Kenya, the European Union, and other countries actually approve the deal, because their conditions could force different ownership arrangements or keep the company whole.

Why

AI pressure: None apparent. No AI product is currently taking Glovo's order volume; the near-term threat to Glovo is ownership breakup, not AI substitution. Could AI do the core job? Only partly.

Bigger players: Uber Eats. Uber is buying Delivery Hero for $14.8B and will absorb Glovo's ~17 non-Iberian markets directly into Uber Eats by H2 2027. Could a giant copy it? Yes, easily.

What protects it. Deep local density in Spain (41% share) and 150,000+ merchants give whoever ends up owning Glovo real leverage, if the deal closes as planned.

What would change this call

Regulatory approval or block of the Uber-Delivery Hero deal by H2 2027. Confirms or unwinds the planned split of Glovo between Uber and SSW Partners.
Spain Q3-Q4 2026 EBITDA results and guidance revision. Shows whether rider-employment cost overruns are worsening or stabilizing.
SSW Partners' post-acquisition strategy announcement for the Iberian core. Reveals whether new owner invests in growth or continues cost-cutting and layoffs.

Key numbers

41% share of Spain food delivery market (2026)
€1.4B price for Glovo's Iberia/Poland/Romania unit to SSW Partners (2026-07-16)
750 layoffs announced March 2026 amid cost overruns (2026-03)

Named risks

Glovo split between Uber and SSW Partners under 2026 deal, expected close H2 2027. Severity: high
Spain rider-employment conversion cost overrunning €100M EBITDA guidance. Severity: high
Regulatory scrutiny in Kenya, EU, Africa and Asia could block or reshape the Uber deal. Severity: medium
Labor unrest including April 2026 three-day rider strike over conditions. Severity: medium
Morocco ordered closure of all seven Glovo dark stores in March 2026 amid competition probe. Severity: low

Rivals, as read in July 2026

Rival	Direction	Evidence
Uber Eats	contesting	Set to acquire Glovo's non-Iberian operations under July 16, 2026 Uber-Delivery Hero deal
Just Eat	contesting	41% vs 39% Spain share (2024) plus active €295M lawsuit against Glovo since 2025
Wolt	contesting	Competes on premium user experience in Southern and Northern Europe, per 2026 analysis
Getir	gaining on	Getir exited Spain quick commerce, leaving Glovo dominant multi-category player as of April 2026
Jumia Food/Bolt Food	gaining on	Jumia exited Kenya Dec 2023; Bolt Food struggling to keep pace per July 2026 report

Questions people ask

Is Glovo profitable?: Glovo's Spain rider-employment conversion was estimated to cost about €100M in 2025 EBITDA, and by March 11, 2026 Glovo announced 750 layoffs in Spain, with analysts saying restructuring costs may exceed that guidance, indicating ongoing margin pressure, not clear profitability.
Who owns Glovo?: Delivery Hero SE holds about 94% of Glovo as of July 2022, following a €2.3B deal. On July 16, 2026 Uber announced a $14.8B offer for Delivery Hero that would split Glovo, with Spain, Portugal, Poland, Romania and Moldova sold to SSW Partners for about €1.4B and the rest going to Uber.
Could AI replace Glovo's delivery riders?: Glovo's core dispatch engine already uses AI-based optimization (published in a July 2024 engineering paper), but physical last-mile courier delivery and its dense merchant network of over 150,000 partners as of May 2025 remain hard for AI to replace directly.
Who is Glovo's biggest competitor?: In Spain, Glovo leads food delivery with about 41% share versus Just Eat's 39% (2024 data), while Uber Eats is Glovo's largest global rival and is set to become a part-owner of Glovo's non-Iberian operations under the July 2026 Uber-Delivery Hero deal.
Will Glovo still exist as one company after 2027?: No single Glovo is expected to survive intact. Under the July 16, 2026 Uber-Delivery Hero deal, Glovo's Iberian core goes to SSW Partners for about €1.4B while roughly 17 other markets go to Uber, with closing expected H2 2027 pending regulatory approval.
Did Glovo have layoffs in 2026?: Yes. On March 11, 2026, Glovo announced an ERE cutting 750 jobs in Spain (about 15% of workforce), concentrated in engineering (~200), marketing (~150), and operations (~250), following a prior 250-job cut in January 2023.

Timeline

2026-07-16Uber announces $14.8B offer for Delivery Hero, splitting Glovo between Uber and SSW Partners
2026-05-19Glovo Italy raises rider minimum pay to €14/hour, effective June 1, 2026
2026-04-24CCOO union leads three-day Glovo rider strike in Spain through April 26
2026-03-11Glovo announces ERE cutting 750 jobs in Spain, about 15% of workforce
2026-03Morocco authorities order Glovo to close all seven grocery dark stores
2025-06EU Commission fines Glovo €105.7M in labor market cartel case
2024-12-02About 15,000 Spain-based Glovo riders converted from freelance to employee status
2023-01-30Glovo cuts about 250 jobs, 6.5% of workforce
2022-07Delivery Hero completes majority acquisition of Glovo, about 94% stake, ~€2.3B valuation
2015Glovo founded in Barcelona by Óscar Pierre and a co-founder

Revision history

22 July 2026

First assessed. Losing its protection. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.

In the same band

Wayfair Meituan Shein Group