Move to Ola Maps Projected to Save Ride-Hailing Giant Rs 100 Crore Annually, Signals Growing Tech Independence
Introduction:
In a significant move, ride-hailing major Ola Cabs has completely shifted from using Google Maps to its own proprietary mapping system, Ola Maps, for its operations. The transition, which comes on the heels of Ola ending its partnership with Microsoft Azure last month, is expected to save the company around Rs 100 crore per year.
The shift underscores Ola’s increasing focus on developing in-house technology capabilities and reducing reliance on third-party providers. It also highlights the growing trend among larger Indian startups to build their own tech stacks for greater control, customization and cost savings.
Founded in 2010, Ola is one of India’s largest mobility platforms, serving hundreds of cities. The company has raised over $4 billion from investors including SoftBank, Tencent and Tiger Global. In recent years, Ola has invested heavily in its own technology, data science, and AI/ML capabilities.
“After Azure exit last month, we’ve now fully exited google maps. We used to spend Rs 100 crore a year but we’ve made that 0 this month by moving completely to our in house Ola maps!” announced Bhavish Aggarwal, cofounder and Chairman of Ola Group.
Ola had acquired Pune-based geospatial services provider GeoSpoc in October 2021 to boost its mapping capabilities. Ola Maps, which had been powering the ride-hailing app partially so far, will now completely fulfill the company’s needs. Ola plans to add advanced features like street view, indoor navigation, 3D maps, and drone imagery to Maps.
The Maps platform will be hosted on the cloud infrastructure of Ola’s AI firm Krutrim. In May, Ola had moved its entire IT workload from Microsoft Azure to Krutrim. “Ola’s embrace of indigenously developed tech solutions is a very positive sign and will encourage other Indian startups to follow suit,” said Rehan Yar Khan, Managing Partner at Orios Venture Partners.
Ola’s savings from dumping Google Maps and Azure are substantial given its scale – around Rs 100 crore annually as per Aggarwal. For context, that’s more than the entire funding raised by over 90% of Indian startups last year. Ola’s operating loss in FY22 was Rs 1,750 crore.
Building in-house mapping solutions requires significant tech investments and geospatial data, making it unfeasible for smaller startups. But for Ola, it’s a strategic bet to improve its unit economics and overall profitability as it eyes an IPO in the next couple of years.
The move also reflects the evolution and maturity of the Indian startup ecosystem. As more home-grown startups achieve scale, they are developing the confidence and capability to build core technologies themselves rather than relying on foreign tech giants.
Ola’s switch to an indigenous mapping system is a landmark for the Indian startup ecosystem. It showcases how leading startups are prioritizing technology self-reliance and cost optimization as they mature. The move will bolster Ola’s bottom line and technology differentiation in the competitive mobility space. More broadly, it could spur other major Indian startups to accelerate development of in-house hardware and software, expanding the country’s technology capabilities.
