Grab Unveils AI Solutions to Boost Productivity for Merchants and Drivers
From Fatin Umairah Abdul Hamid
SINGAPORE, April 8 (Bernama) -- Southeast Asia’s leading superapp technology company, Grab has unveiled its latest artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to help merchant- and driver-partners unlock their full potential on the platform.
Among the key offerings are the AI Merchant Assistant and AI Driver Companion, which were introduced today at the inaugural GrabX product showcase.
Both offerings were developed in collaboration with AI research organisations OpenAI and Anthropic, using their latest foundational models.
Grab is expanding its collaboration with OpenAI, first announced in May 2024, and signed a new strategic partnership with Anthropic, the maker of the Claude AI models, to jointly develop new AI solutions.
Chief product officer Philipp Kandal said the two agentic AI solutions introduced today are personal, intelligent assistants designed to help every merchant and driver optimise their businesses and maximise productivity.
“Our merchant- and driver-partners are some of Southeast Asia's most entrepreneurial individuals. We want to equip them with the tools to succeed, especially in an increasingly AI-centric world.
“This will help them focus on what they do best -- serving customers. These solutions reflect our ‘AI-First with Heart’ approach -- our commitment to solving real problems for the communities we serve, with AI at the core of how we work and what we build,” he said at the event.
In a statement, Grab said its new AI Merchant Assistant, a chatbot powered by large language models (LLMs) and integrated into the GrabMerchant app, provides tailored insights and supports daily tasks, acting as a 24/7 business advisor to help level the playing field for all merchants.
"It can proactively reach out to merchants with business suggestions, like how to improve sales, in addition to helping them handle certain tasks like creating ad campaigns and updating menus.
"Soon, it will also suggest financing solutions tailored towards individual merchants, including lending products from GrabFin and Grab's digital banks,” it said.
According to Grab, the AI Driver Companion, featuring two AI-powered tools within the Grab Driver app, is designed to help drivers work more efficiently and productively. It includes an AI ride-guidance tool that uses real-time and historical data to predict high-demand areas and guide drivers to these hotspots for faster job matching.
To date, Grab said over 250,000 drivers across Southeast Asia use this feature weekly.
Grab said the second feature is an AI-assisted voice reporting tool that allows drivers to verbally update Grab on road conditions in real time. Since its pilot rollout, it has received over 16,000 reports daily from more than 900,000 drivers across the region.
“At Grab, we’ve always believed that win-win partnerships help us go further, faster. By working with two of the world’s leading AI research organisations, we gain access to cutting-edge capabilities that enable us to create innovative solutions for our community,” it added.
-- BERNAMA
