Brazil's $20 billion food delivery market has erupted into allegations of corporate espionage as Chinese-backed rivals challenge iFood's dominance. iFood CEO Diego Barreto claims a coordinated effort to steal business secrets began when Keeta and 99 announced their Brazilian expansion. The country's 200 million highly online consumers and digital payment adoption have made it a prime target for Chinese tech companies.

Police are investigating multiple cases involving former iFood employees suspected of data theft. One ex-worker allegedly downloaded information on 4,900 restaurants and sent it to a private email address. Another reportedly received $1,400 for answering questions about iFood's operations during a video interview. Keeta CEO Tony Qiu denies wrongdoing but claims his company was also targeted when individuals posing as employees visited restaurants.

With R$7.6 billion ($1.5 billion) pledged by Chinese entrants and iFood investing R$17 billion in the past year, the battle has intensified. Some restaurants welcome the competition against iFood's estimated 80% market share, while others report being contacted with specific contract details. Brazil's government has embraced the investment as part of closer ties with China, though previous attempts to challenge iFood have failed when Uber Eats and 99Food exited the market.