Instacart: Designing TPRM and Delivering Risk Singularity

Summary

Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM) is often a bottleneck– slowing operations and draining resources when it should be enabling the business. The answer lies in a scalable, automated, risk-based approach. Instacart, already working with SAFE on CRQ, recognized this opportunity early. When SAFE launched its autonomous TPRM platform powered by Agentic AI, Instacart’s leadership became design partners to help shape and adopt the future of TPRM.

Metrics

• 600+ Third Parties
• 3 Weeks to Operationalize TPRM
• 1000+ Documentation
• 1800+ Minutes Saved Per Cycle
• 100% Vendors Assessed without Adding Headcount

The Moment of Truth

Instacart’s team has been able to challenge legacy processes and secure leadership buy-in to remove redundant due diligence and assessment requirements for specific vendor types, ultimately streamlining and strengthening their TPRM program. With SAFE, Instacart can instantly prioritize critical vendors, accurately scope 100% of their third-party ecosystem, and focus assessments where they matter. 

The Challenges

• High Volume, Limited Depth: With nearly 600 vendors across multiple tiers, the TPRM team wanted to move from broad, checklist-driven reviews to deeper, risk-based assessments.
• Manual, Time-Intensive Processes: Assessments required significant coordination and follow-ups, leaving limited time for higher-value analysis and strategic oversight.
• Delayed Risk Visibility: Continuous monitoring only surfaced breach alerts days after they were made public, limiting proactive response.
• Improving Quality and Consistency: While vendor questionnaires and reviews met baseline needs, the team sought to enhance overall precision, consistency, and automation.
• Scaling Without Adding Resources: Relying on external reviewers added delays and variability. Instacart aimed to bring greater efficiency and control in-house—without increasing headcount.

Why SAFE

SAFE’s autonomous TPRM platform was the perfect fit for Instacart—combining speed of innovation, Agentic AI, and a flat pricing model that allows the team to scale without adding time, headcount, or cost. Powered by 25+ AI Agents, the platform streamlines onboarding, due diligence, vendor tiering, continuous monitoring, and stakeholder reporting—creating a seamless, end-to-end workflow across Instacart’s third- and fourth-party ecosystem. This enabled Instacart to adopt a risk-based and autonomous TPRM approach. 

The SAFE Solution

• Risk-Based Third-Party Risk Management: SAFE enabled Instacart to shift from broad, checklist-driven reviews to a risk-based model. Vendors are now intelligently tiered by business criticality, with tailored questionnaires and focus areas for higher-value assessments.
• Consistent, Automated Reassessments: Agentic AI-driven workflows streamline reassessments and follow-ups, ensuring timely, consistent engagement across the vendor ecosystem—freeing the team to focus on strategic actions.
• Real-Time Risk Monitoring: SAFE delivers continuous visibility into vendor risk by monitoring the external attack surface, threat intelligence, and security events in real time—empowering proactive, data-driven decisions.
• Smarter Questionnaires: AI-assisted questionnaires are auto-populated and validated against regulatory and internal benchmarks, improving accuracy and ensuring alignment with evolving compliance expectations.
• Defensible Oversight: SAFE provides a unified, trustworthy view of third-party risk, allowing Instacart to maintain control and oversight without reliance on external review cycles.