Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal has raised a serious red flag about a growing problem quietly eating into the margins of food delivery platforms: refund fraud powered by artificial intelligence. According to Goyal, customers are increasingly using AI tools to doctor images of food orders, making perfectly fine meals appear damaged, contaminated, or mishandled.
The most common tricks include digitally added insects, cracked containers, spilled gravies, and even smashed birthday cakes. These edited images are then submitted as proof to claim refunds or replacements. What makes the issue harder to tackle is how realistic these AI generated images have become, often passing basic visual checks with ease.
Industry insiders say refund abuse has always existed, but the scale has changed dramatically over the past year. With generative AI tools becoming cheap and accessible, even first time users can manipulate photos in minutes. For platforms like Zomato, Swiggy, and others, this has translated into higher losses and increased pressure on restaurant partners who are often penalized for issues that never occurred.
Goyal pointed out that such misuse forces companies to rethink trust based systems. Refunds that were once processed quickly are now being subjected to tighter verification, longer resolution times, and advanced fraud detection models. While this protects businesses, it also risks frustrating genuine customers with real complaints.
E commerce players are now investing heavily in image forensics, metadata checks, and behavioral analysis to separate real issues from manufactured ones. Some platforms are also quietly tracking repeat refund patterns to flag suspicious accounts.
The episode highlights an uncomfortable reality. As AI tools become more powerful, they are not just improving productivity but also creating new avenues for everyday fraud. For consumer tech companies, the challenge is no longer just growth, but defending trust in an era where seeing is no longer believing.
