Grab’s Virtual Store Manager turns security camera footage into smart business insights

Grab Product Team

. April 8, 2026 . Regional

Imagine if every security camera in one of our merchant-partners’ restaurants or stores wasn’t just a recording device, but a store manager that never sleeps.

That’s our vision for Virtual Store Manager. Traditional CCTV is a “just-in-case” security measure. Store managers review archived footage to find out what was going on. With Virtual Store Manager, we are repurposing that existing hardware. Instead of just recording and storing, and thanks to AI, CCTV cameras are now being taught to “see” and “understand” what goes on in real-time—turning them into a powerhouse of business intelligence.

How the Virtual Store Manager works

Virtual Store Manager works with our proprietary Edge Box technology, a piece of hardware that uses AI to process and classify video data locally and in real-time instead of uploading files to the cloud, making data collection faster, cheaper, and more secure. The box plugs directly into a store’s existing CCTV infrastructure, and then filters those thousands of hours of footage into a unified dashboard, based on specific parameters.

This dashboard reduces the need for manual monitoring on-site. One manager or a management team can oversee an entire multi-store network from a single screen.

That’s the real magic of the Virtual Store Manager: it helps merchants scale efficiently.

Setting up Virtual Store Manager to work for you

Virtual Store Manager can be configured to send out real-time alerts—for example, when a long queue forms in-store, so that management can intervene before customers complain.

It can monitor store opening and closing compliance, and track food preparation and table cleanliness to maintain high hygiene standards.

It can even measure the wait times of delivery partners, helping merchants optimise their kitchen flow.

Beyond just fixing problems, the platform acts as a growth engine. By analysing footfall and where customers spend the most time, merchants can see exactly which marketing displays are attracting customers and which aisles are being ignored.

The Virtual Store Manager is currently being piloted within Grab’s ecosystem, including at Grab’s supermarket subsidiary in Malaysia, Jaya Grocer, and in Thailand. We’re constantly refining the product, based on our learnings, so that more merchants can deploy it to tackle their specific friction points.

Maximising ROI without the headcount

The goal of Virtual Store Manager isn’t to replace the human element of retail, but to empower it.

When a manager can oversee multiple locations through AI-driven oversight, they are freed from the bottleneck of reviewing hours of footage or doing site visits. They can focus on what actually moves the needle: high-value customer engagement and service quality.

For merchants, it’s easy to get started. The Virtual Store Manager system is brand-agnostic and requires a simple installation at the outlet, plugging into existing CCTV hardware.

At Grab, we believe that the future of the merchant experience is one where data removes the guesswork. With the Virtual Store Manager, we’re giving every store owner the eyes and the insights they need to run their business with expert precision.

GrabX

Grab’s Virtual Store Manager turns security camera footage into smart business insights

How the Virtual Store Manager works

Setting up Virtual Store Manager to work for you

Maximising ROI without the headcount

Komsan Chiyadis

Komsan Chiyadis