Deepinder Goyal just handed off the CEO crown at Eternal, Zomato's parent company, to Albinder Dhindsa, the CEO of its fast-growing quick-commerce division Blinkit. The move signals where the real momentum is right now. Goyal stays on as vice chairman to pursue 'higher-risk exploration,' including longevity research and brain-health wearables. It's a calculated step that reflects both Blinkit's explosive growth and Goyal's appetite for new bets beyond the established food delivery business.
Deepinder Goyal just stepped back from running Eternal, the holding company behind Zomato and Blinkit, to hand the CEO job to Albinder Dhindsa. The timing speaks volumes about where the action really is in Indian commerce right now.
Goyal's stepping down after building Zomato from a restaurant discovery app into a food delivery giant over nearly two decades. But he's not leaving the company entirely. He'll stay on as vice chairman, a role that lets him focus on what he calls "higher-risk exploration and experimentation" without the constraints of running a publicly listed company. "This is a change in title, not in commitment toward outcomes," Goyal said in a letter to shareholders. "Eternal remains my life's work."
What's driving this shift? Look at the numbers. Eternal reported third-quarter results that show quick commerce is eating lunch right now. Profit surged about 73% to ₹1.02 billion from a year earlier, while adjusted revenue hit ₹166.92 billion, up 190% year-over-year. That's the kind of growth trajectory that gets founder attention.
Blinkit, Eternal's quick-commerce arm that the company acquired for $568 million back in 2022, is the real star here. Net order value jumped 121% last quarter to ₹133 billion. That's not just growth, that's the entire market shifting directions. Quick commerce went from a buzzword to India's dominant e-commerce model almost overnight, and Dhindsa's been the architect of that expansion.
Goyal's background makes this transition less about inexperience and more about resource allocation. He co-founded Zomato with Pankaj Chaddah in 2008, launching as FoodieBay while both were grinding at Bain & Company. They went full-time in 2009, rebranded to Zomato in 2010 (after sorting out a naming conflict with eBay), and eventually built the food delivery empire. Chaddah departed in 2018, but Goyal stayed focused, acquiring Uber Eats' India business in 2020 and then Blinkit in 2022. Now he's pivoting.
Outside Eternal, Goyal's already running multiple bets. He's been working on Continue Research, a longevity-focused initiative, and Temple, an experimental brain-health wearable. He's also a co-founder at LAT Aerospace and does angel investing on the side. These are exactly the kinds of high-risk, early-stage projects that are hard to pursue when you're managing quarterly earnings reports and investor expectations.
