RAFAEL ILISHAYEV

We started delivering hookah and snacks from a storage unit in college. Same idea, different scale.

The key insight was owning the inventory. DoorDash does not own the food. We own the chips, the beer, the medicine. That control is our advantage.

We raised $3.4 billion because instant delivery felt inevitable. The correction taught us that inevitable does not mean immediately profitable.

Midnight delivery is our sweet spot. Nobody else is open at 2am, and that is when people want snacks the most. Zero competition, maximum willingness to pay.

We laid off thousands of people. It was brutal. But a company that runs out of money helps nobody.

The 7-Eleven of the internet is still a $100 billion idea. We just need to get the unit economics right before the money runs out.