{"id":212629,"date":"2024-05-03T14:59:28","date_gmt":"2024-05-03T06:59:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.grab.com\/sg\/?post_type=editorial&p=212629"},"modified":"2025-02-26T18:33:35","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T10:33:35","slug":"grab-a-seat-ep-2-grabmaps-geo-mapping-solutions","status":"publish","type":"editorial","link":"https:\/\/www.grab.com\/sg\/inside-grab\/stories\/grab-a-seat-ep-2-grabmaps-geo-mapping-solutions\/","title":{"rendered":"Grab A Seat Episode 2: Secrets Behind GrabMaps"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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In the episode 2 of Grab a Seat, host Ankit Vengurlekar talks to Sriram Iyer, Grab\u2019s Head of Product, Geo & Fulfilment, about how Grab developed its own mapping solutions. As Southeast Asia\u2019s go-to superapp for ride-hailing and food delivery, Grab had to make sure it was working with accurate location data to make their operations efficient and keep users happy.<\/p>

(Watch: Grab a Seat Ep 1: The origins of Grab’s superapp vision<\/a>)<\/strong><\/p>

Southeast Asia is typically not a market prioritised by global mapping players. Incumbent map providers have also struggled to map some of the region\u2019s more challenging terrain, such as small alleys that four-wheeled vehicles can\u2019t pass through.<\/p>

\u201cThat was the inflection point where we decided, \u2018Okay, we got to own this problem end-to-end.\u2019 And when we build our own maps, we\u2019ve got to be strategic and long-term about it, and see how this serves not just this pain point right now, but helps us evolve our business over time,\u201d Sriram said.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Leveraging AI, data, and emerging tech<\/h5>

Traditional mapping is typically very expensive. One of the reasons Grab has been able to build maps in a cost-efficient way<\/a> is because it has automated a lot of its processes using AI, machine learning and data science.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>

For instance,\u00a0 Grab developed its own map-making cameras to collect imagery.<\/p>

\u201cWe figured the existing cameras on the market didn\u2019t fit our needs, so we built our own map-making cameras. And these map-making cameras are AI-enabled. They have a pretty hefty processor on the edge that does some pre-processing,\u201d Sriram explained.<\/p>

(Read more: KartaCam 2: Grab\u2019s next-generation map-making camera<\/a>)<\/strong><\/p>

\u201cVision AI is one of the fundamentals on which maps are built. So we extract stop signs, turn restrictions, the lanes on the road, a blockage, or a new store that has opened up on the side of the road,\u201d he added.<\/p>

On the emergence of generative AI and large language models, Sriram said that these technologies present massive opportunities in reinventing the future of mapping.\u00a0<\/p>

The Grab a Seat<\/i> podcast is available to listeners on 30 streaming platforms including Apple, Spotify and YouTube.<\/p>

New episodes launch on a weekly basis.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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