Commitments and Contingencies

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2023

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Commitments and Contingencies

10. Commitments and Contingencies

Leases

The Company’s leases primarily include corporate offices. The lease terms of operating leases vary from one year to 11 years. The Company has leases that include one or more options to extend the lease term for up to five years as well as options to terminate the lease within one year. The Company’s lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that the Company will exercise such options. Most of these options to extend or terminate the lease do not create a significant economic incentive to extend the lease term and hence are not recognized as part of the Company’s operating lease liabilities and operating lease right-of-use assets. The Company leases office space under noncancelable operating lease agreements with expirations through June 2027. The Company did not modify, enter into, or acquire any material leasing arrangements during the three or nine months ended September 30, 2022 or 2023.

Sales and Indirect Taxes

The Company pays applicable state, franchise, and other taxes in state and local jurisdictions in which the Company conducts business. In the United States, the Company is under audit by various tax authorities with regard to sales and indirect tax matters. The subject matter of these audits primarily relates to the reporting of sales on behalf of the Company’s third-party sellers or tax treatment applied to the sale of the Company’s services in these jurisdictions. While the Company believes it properly accrues and pays taxes according to its understanding of tax requirements in each taxing

jurisdiction, it is possible that tax authorities may question the Company’s interpretation of taxability. As such, there is a high degree of complexity involved in the interpretation and application of state and local sales and indirect tax rules to the Company’s activities. As a result, the Company maintains a reserve related to potential tax, interest, or penalties that may become due. Significant judgments are made by the Company in estimating these reserves which includes assessing the taxability of goods or services transacted using the Company’s technology solution. The Company maintains such reserves until the respective statute of limitations has passed or upon conclusion with the relevant tax authorities, at which point the tax exposure and related interest and penalties are released. The reserve balance was $69 million and $34 million as of December 31, 2022 and September 30, 2023, respectively, and is included within other long-term liabilities on the condensed consolidated balance sheets. The Company recognized a reserve release of $2 million and $23 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022 and 2023, respectively. The Company recognized a reserve release of $2 million and $34 million related to these reserves for the nine months ended September 30, 2022 and 2023, respectively. The reserve release during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 is primarily due to a reserve release of $18 million related to the resolution of a sales and use tax examination with the State of New York. These amounts were recorded within general and administrative expense in the condensed consolidated statements of operations.

Legal Matters

The Company records a liability for legal contingencies when the Company believes that it is both probable that a loss has been incurred and the amount can be estimated. If the Company determines that a loss is reasonably possible and the loss or range of loss can be estimated, the Company discloses the possible loss in the condensed consolidated financial statements. If the Company determines that a loss is either probable or reasonably possible, but the loss or range of loss cannot be estimated, the Company discloses that fact in the condensed consolidated financial statements. Legal fees are expensed as incurred.

The Company operates in several jurisdictions where there have been regulations enacted with respect to methods companies should use to classify workers as either independent contractors or employees, such as California, which enacted California Assembly Bill 5 in 2019. The Company believes that it has properly classified its workers in all jurisdictions in which it operates. Further, on December 16, 2020, the California state ballot initiative, Proposition 22, which provides a framework that offers legal certainty regarding the status of independent work and protects worker flexibility and the quality of on-demand work, among other things, became effective. The Company provides appropriate worker benefits and other protections in accordance with Proposition 22, including guaranteed minimum earnings, healthcare subsidies, insurance, and safety trainings. On August 20, 2021, a judge in Alameda County Superior Court granted a writ that orders the State of California to not enforce Proposition 22 on the ground that it is unconstitutional. On March 13, 2023, the appellate court largely reversed the superior court and effectively upheld Proposition 22. Plaintiffs appealed the decision to the California Supreme Court. If the appellate court ruling is reversed by the California Supreme Court, the Company will face continued legal uncertainty over whether it can properly classify a shopper as an independent contractor in California. If shoppers are determined to be employees under U.S. federal or state law, or under the laws of other jurisdictions in which the Company operates, including as a result of litigation, this would likely require the Company to significantly alter its existing business model and could result in increases to its costs related to shoppers and decreases in the breadth of its offerings and geographic coverage. Further, if the Company changes its offerings or increases customer fees as a result of the increased costs, such changes may result in lower order volumes, which in turn would have an adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations.

The Company has other active legal matters in California and several other jurisdictions, including litigation, government audits, administrative claims, and inquiries, related to its classification of individuals who provide delivery and other fulfillment services as non-employee contractors. These matters involve allegations that certain individuals are misclassified and, as a result, may be due unpaid minimum statutory wages, overtime, expense reimbursement, and certain other payments and protections, among other issues. Courts and agencies handling these matters may rule that the Company cannot engage workers to perform certain tasks, including delivery and other fulfillment services, as independent contractors. In some of these cases, the Company has entered into settlement agreements to resolve the claims without any admission of liability; in others, there is active litigation or proceedings, and several cases are stayed pending the outcome of earlier filed complaints or other legal developments. In October 2022, the Company signed and filed a stipulated judgment with the city attorney for San Diego, California, which was entered by the court in January 2023 and settled the case for $46.5 million. This amount was previously accrued for and was included in the reserve balances noted below as of December 31, 2022 and subsequently paid during the nine months ended September 30, 2023. In March 2023, the Company entered into a settlement agreement with the California Employment Development Department to resolve

disputes concerning alleged unemployment insurance contributions for $32 million. In April 2023, the settlement became effective after the approval by the California Attorney General and an Administrative Law Judge of the California Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board. This amount was previously accrued for and was included in the reserve balances noted below as of December 31, 2022 and subsequently paid during the nine months ended September 30, 2023.

In addition to the matters described above, the Company and its subsidiaries are also routinely subject to actual or threatened legal actions relating to alleged violations of contract, regulatory, environmental, health and safety, employment, intellectual property, data protection and privacy, consumer protection, unfair competition, tax, and other laws. In some of these proceedings, claims for substantial monetary damages are asserted against the Company and could result in fines, penalties, compensatory damages, or non-monetary relief. The Company does not believe that these matters will have a material adverse effect upon its results of operations, cash flows, or financial condition.

To the extent the Company has agreed to settle outstanding claims or where the Company has concluded it is probable that a resolution may be reached at an amount of loss that is estimable, the loss has been recognized within general and administrative expense in the condensed consolidated statements of operations. The total loss recognized related to these claims was $17 million and not material for the three months ended September 30, 2022 and 2023, respectively, and $30 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2022. During the nine months ended September 30, 2023, the Company recognized a reserve release related to these claims of $6 million. The reserve balance was $164 million and $60 million as of December 31, 2022 and September 30, 2023, respectively, and is included within accrued and other current liabilities on the condensed consolidated balance sheets. The actual losses incurred on claims that have not been resolved may differ from the initial estimates of loss, and such differences could be material.

The Company is also subject from time to time to audits by government agencies in the various jurisdictions in which it operates. To the extent the Company is obligated to make payments in these jurisdictions (other than income taxes), the Company has recorded the related expense within general and administrative expense in the condensed consolidated statements of operations. The results of these audits may result in additional payments, penalties, and interest, and such additional amounts could be material.

Indemnifications

The Company has entered into indemnification agreements with certain of the Company’s officers, directors, and current and former employees, and the Company’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws contain certain indemnification obligations. It is not possible to determine the maximum potential loss under these indemnification provisions due to the limited history of prior indemnification claims and the unique facts and circumstances involved in each particular provision. To date, no significant costs have been incurred, either individually or collectively, in connection with the Company’s indemnification provisions.