An American entrepreneur went viral when he applauded India’s hyper-fast delivery ecosystem, saying the country is way ahead of the United States in terms of speed and efficiency. During a recent trip to India, James Blunt said he was amazed when Swiggy and Blinkit delivered his order in just six minutes.
“Every time I visit India… one thing always stands out: the delivery speed is insane in India. @Swiggy, @letsblinkit… you order something and it’s at your door in 6 MINUTES. I was thrilled!” he wrote on X, adding that Uber Eats delivery in the US “normally takes an hour.” He called the “efficiency gap” between the two countries “crazy” and asked users why such a difference exists.
The post immediately sparked an online debate. While many Indians proudly echoed his praise for the country’s fast-paced business boom, others pointed to increasing pressure on delivery workers and the broader human cost of ultra-fast turnarounds.
User wrote: Insanely cheap, readily available labor and regulations favorable to exploitation. This is true for India at least. Also, this is only valid in major cities in India. Not widely.”
Another user commented: “Yeah, that’s what I’m thinking and I use it every day. I have to admit Blinkit has optimized their operations nicely, they’ve set up a fulfillment center every 1-2 miles with a standard delivery team of 10-20. They can’t be late even if they wanted to.”
“Easy availability of grocery/restaurant chains, cheap labor and no resource constraints,” wrote a third on X.
“Delivery people break literally every law while driving… Jumping signals, driving on the wrong side, no lane discipline… Every possible law is broken in one single delivery. That’s why the delivery is so fast. We, as car drivers, are scared of these delivery people,” wrote a fourth.
“Everyone talks about cheap labor, which is true to some extent. But the hidden trick is inventory management based on hyper-localized prediction of demand patterns. It’s a neat technology with a lot of artificial intelligence. Which makes it possible,” wrote a fifth.
Blunt’s observation joins a growing global conversation about India’s 10-minute delivery culture — a model that has drawn both admiration for its scale and criticism over its sustainability and workforce impact.
