DoorDash opened Wednesday's trading day at the NYSE virtually, and a photo taken at the bell shows the surreal reality of going public during a pandemic
- Food-delivery company DoorDash began trading on Wednesday as part of its highly-anticipated blockbuster initial public offering.
- A photo of a DoorDash representative ringing the opening bell, signaling the commencement of trading on the public market, looks different than IPOs in the past before the COVID-19 pandemic altered life as we knew it.
- Guests tuned in virtually, and a single person stood on the podium ringing the bell, a symbolic signal that public trading has begun for the day.
- DoorDash isn't the only big company that will start trading on the stock market this month — Airbnb is right behind it, as is Affirm, Wish, and Roblox.
A DoorDash representative rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday, signaling the beginning of trading as part of the food-delivery company's blockbuster initial public offering.
The company priced its shares at $102 per share on Tuesday, a price that rose 78% to $182 when it began trading. It raised around $3.4 billion.
And of note was the scene at the NYSE, with attendees tuning into the moment via virtual videoconferencing and a single person atop the platform ringing the bell. Sequoia Capital, one of the company's investors, posted a video of the bell ringing on Twitter.
The scene on Wednesday is telling of the times we're in, as the COVID-19 pandemic has altered the reality of every aspect of life since March.
IPOs in the past looked much different. When ride-sharing giant Uber began trading in May 2019, for example, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi and many others gathered to much fanfare at the NYSE to celebrate the company's blockbuster IPO.
And in 2019, when the famous denim company Levi Strauss went public, the NYSE bent its strict trading floor dress code for one day to allow traders to wear Levi-branded jeans and jackets. 
DoorDash filed to go public in mid-November and reported that it experienced a surge in business during the pandemic, generating a $149 million loss on revenue of $1.9 billion. The company said it may not be able to "maintain or increase profitability in the future" due to expected cost increases.
The company experienced a surge in orders during the pandemic as customers forced to stay indoors relied on deliveries. DoorDash CEO Tony Xu told Business Insider's Candy Cheng in a Wednesday interview that the company will retain the customers that signed onto its platform during the health crisis.
"What I learned in the pandemic is that once consumers form habits, they're hard to change," Xu told Cheng. "Delivery has become an additive because we eat 20 to 25 times a week so it's not all going to be one method."
DoorDash is just one highly-anticipated IPO that will kick off this month. Airbnb will begin trading on the NASDAQ on Thursday, and Wish, Affirm, Roblox, and C3.ai, which debuted Wednesday as well.