How upstarts are challenging the dominance of ride-hailing giants Ola and Uber
mobility-aggregator business is seeing an accelerated turnaround. But the revival is being driven by new entrants who are challenging the dominance of ride-hailing giants Ola and Uber.
GROWTH SURGE These include Rapido in the auto category; Blu Smart, with its electric car fleet in Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru; Drife, with a blockchain-based business model headquartered in Bengaluru; Shoffr, a premium taxi service, and several new firms operating specifically in the lucrative airport and inter-city service segments, as well as online travel agents like Makemytrip and even airlines, who are offering airport transport as part of their value-added services.
These newer players, which are gaining traction, are deploying AI features, offering attractive packages for drivers, lower prices, more convenient booking options, the ability to negotiate fares and features to book rides in advance.
“At a monthly level, we get more than 20 lakh new user registrations,” said Pavan Guntupalli, co-founder, Rapido. Rapido currently operates 13 lakh rides per day across all categories and is expanding fleets in the coming six months with 10 lakh more vehicles facilitating 7-8 lakh more rides across 90 cities.
“In Hyderabad, we launched Auto Plus, a premium service in the autorickshaw category.
The no-cancellation policy feature plays a crucial role in relieving the rampant consumer anxiety around the availability of rides and optimises on ensuring a dependable transportation service,” said Guntupalli.
DRIVERS OF BUSINESSThe giant two have also bounced back from pandemic declines. According to data capture platform Vumonic, Uber has surpassed its earlier peak volumes.
