Uber announced during CES 2025 a multi-year exclusive partnership with Delta Air Lines that allows SkyMiles members to earn miles when they ride with Uber or order delivery through Uber Eats in the United States. The deal means an end of Delta’s partnership with Lyft.
The Uber partnership will launch in the spring, giving Uber customers access to perks like “improved Uber pickup and drop off experiences at Delta hubs,” according to a statement from the company. When asked what this meant, an Uber spokesperson declined to elaborate.
Lyft and Delta formed its partnership in 2018; it will expire April 7, 2025.
“Years ago we teamed up with our first airline to unlock more ways to uplevel and innovate around travel experiences, thereby turning those customers into Lyft loyalists,” an emailed statement from Lyft reads. “We’re continuing to expand our horizons by joining forces with major brands who share our customer obsession, like Alaska Airlines, Chase, DoorDash, Mastercard, Hilton, Disney, and Bilt. Link your Lyft account and discover a growing world of benefits.”
Uber is promising its customers with accounts linked to a Delta Skymiles membership 1 mile per dollar spent on $40+ restaurant and grocery orders with Uber Eats and on UberX rides to and from the airport. Premium Rides, like Uber Comfort or Uber Black, will get users 2 miles per dollar spent. And for riders who reserve in advance, they can earn 3 miles per dollar spent.
The tie-up with Delta may be one of the steps connecting the airline and Uber with Joby Aviation, an eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) startup that has its own separate partnerships with both Uber and Delta. Delta’s partnership with Joby means that Delta customers will one day get to tap Joby’s electric air taxi service, starting in NYC.
Uber’s partnership with Joby is more involved. Joby acquired Uber Elevate, Uber’s urban air mobility unit, in 2020. Part of that deal was to integrate their respective services into each other’s apps for a more seamless connection between ground and air travel. Additionally, Joby’s air taxi software, ElevateOS, which came out of that partnership, promises to enable on-demand mobility not unlike hailing an Uber ride.
Last October, the three companies held an event in NYC where they spoke about a vision of connected mobility, stopping just shy of announcing a full-blown, three-way partnership.
Joby, which is backed by both Uber and Delta, still has to get the necessary certifications to operate an electric air taxi service, but is aiming to launch in 2025.
Spokespeople for Uber, Joby, and Delta declined to share any advancements in what I am predicting will be an obvious alliance.
