Grab, OpenAI announce collaboration to strengthen Grab's use of AI

• Collaboration will see the development of AI tools for Grab users, partners
• Solutions will focus on three areas: accessibility, customer support & mapping

Grab and OpenAI have announced they will collaborate to build and deploy advanced AI solutions that enrich the Grab experience for users, partners, and employees. This collaboration, which the parties claim is the first of its kind for OpenAI in the region, combines the development of AI tools for Grab users and partners with an initial pilot deployment of ChatGPT Enterprise for Grab employees.

Grab will access OpenAI’s technical and strategic expertise to partner on solutions tailored to the specific needs of users in Southeast Asia, focusing initially on three key areas:

• Accessibility: Grab will leverage the use of text and voice capabilities to make its services more accessible to all users, particularly the visually impaired or elderly who may otherwise find it challenging to navigate the on-screen app interface.
• Customer support: Grab will explore using AI technology to build customer support chatbots that can better understand user problems and help resolve them faster
• Mapping: Grab will leverage OpenAI’s vision capabilities to enhance its map-making efforts through greater automation and higher quality data extraction from visual images. This means GrabMaps can be updated even faster, delivering a better experience to consumers and driver-partners.

In addition to developing advanced AI solutions for its users and partners, Grab also intends to deploy ChatGPT Enterprise among select employees through an initial pilot, complementing existing efforts to drive wider use of AI tools across its employee base to boost productivity.

Philipp Kandal, chief product officer at Grab, said, “We’ve been a pioneer of AI adoption in the region, and believe that generative AI has a lot of potential to further transform the way we solve problems for our partners and users. We’re excited to work with OpenAI as a partner to help accelerate the exploration and use of this technology within Grab.” 

He added that Grab’s goal with any new technology has always been to use it to solve real problems, at scale. “Therefore, equipped with the latest tools, we look forward to building novel and delightful experiences for our customers while improving the way that every Grabber works,” Kandal said.

Meanwhile, Brad Lightcap, chief operating officer of OpenAI, commented: "We're looking forward to working with Grab and together exploring how advanced AI can benefit Grab users, partners, and employees across Southeast Asia."