Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Grab investing $208M in AI to build regional super app

Grab investing $208M in AI to build regional super app

Content image - Phnom Penh Post
Southeast Asian ride-hailing start-up Grab Holdings intends to invest $150 million into artificial intelligence (AI) research over the next year. THE STRAITS TIMES (SINGAPORE)

Grab investing $208M in AI to build regional super app

Southeast Asian ride-hailing start-up Grab Holdings intends to invest $150 million into artificial intelligence (AI) research over the next year, accelerating its expanding business that now includes food delivery, digital payments and digital content.

Grab, in hot competition with rival Gojek to become Southeast Asia’s do-it-all super app, outlined for the first time a blueprint for its use and deployment of AI.

It will build on the $100 million it had previously invested in the technology, said co-founder Tan Hooi Ling, and improve its fraud prevention and natural language processing (NLP) technology.

“We want to go from AI-powered to AI everywhere,” Tan said in an interview with Bloomberg TV at the Sooner Than You Think tech conference in Singapore, which ended on Friday.

She sees successful technology companies building “great platforms that are very localised to the problem they are trying to solve”.

So Grab is working with Microsoft on delivering better NLP and making the region’s leader in ride hailing, food delivery and digital payments even more tailored and accessible to users in the various markets.

Technology companies like Grab are preparing as blazing-fast fifth-generation networks spread, powering complex AI applications and catalysing the emergence of futuristic technologies like self-driven cars.

But Grab, according to Tan, is focused on its customers and their immediate needs. “We won’t just build AI for the sake of AI,” she said.

Grab, which is raising more than $4.5 billion in its latest funding round from heavy hitters, including SoftBank Group’s Vision Fund and Tencent Holdings, is hiring thousands of people and setting up research centres from Beijing to Seattle.

At the heart of its global effort is an ambition to create an all-in-one “super app” akin to Tencent’s WeChat for China.

The company’s GrabPay service already allows consumers to pick up the tab for rides and order food, and it is expanding into lending and insurance.

Last year, it debuted a financial technology platform and launched Grab Ventures to fund promising start-ups.

The company is also said to be considering applying for a digital banking licence if Singapore allows it.

Tan concluded by saying that Grab, which is valued at about $14 billion, according to CB Insights, is “very much on track” to match or even slightly exceed forecasts of $2 billion in revenue for the year. THE STRAITS TIMES (SINGAPORE)

MOST VIEWED

  • Bareknuckle champion wants Kun Khmer fighter

    Dave Leduc, who is the current openweight Lethwei boxing champion in Myanmar, has announced that he will travel to Cambodia this year to challenge SEA Games gold medallist Prum Samnang any time that is convenient, after their planned match later this month in Slovakia was

  • Five-year-old Hanuman dances his way into hearts of Cambodia

    A young talent from a new-established settlement has emerged, captivating the online world with his mesmerising performances of the traditional Cambodian monkey dance. Roeun Kakada is a five-year-old prodigy who has taken the social media sphere by storm with his exceptional dance skills and dedication

  • Fresh Covid warnings as Thai hospital fills

    A senior health official reminds the public to remain vigilant, as neighbouring countries experience an increase in Covid-19 cases, with the latest surge appearing to be a result of the Omicron XBB.1.5 sub-variant. Or Vandine, secretary of state and spokeswoman for the Ministry of Health,

  • Honda shutters Siem Reap football club

    Japanese football legend Keisuke Honda, the owner of Siem Reap football club Soltilo Angkor FC, has been forced to shut the club down, after it failed to attract sponsorship for the upcoming season. Honda, the former manager of the Cambodia men's national football team, said

  • PM declares ASEAN Para Games open

    The 12th ASEAN Para Games officially kicked off on the evening of June 3 at Morodok Techo National Stadium in Phnom Penh, with a spectacular opening ceremony featuring fireworks and performances by some of the Kingdom’s most accomplished talents. Tens of thousands of sports fans

  • Hun Sen warns of regional tensions

    ASIA is becoming a dangerous geopolitical hotspot, with several countries announcing that they intend to send naval vessels towards Southeast Asia and on to the South China Sea, warned Prime Minister Hun Sen. “Heated geopolitical issues can easily escalate, namely to war. I am not